Project Asgard: Viking Assault Unit
by Dasmara
Summary: This is an AU. Honkai Wars have gone on for thousands of years with humanity struggling to survive each time and that pushed Schicksal to come up with unorthodox solution, by providing supporter for Valkyrie. The supporter is called Vikings, group of male soldiers equipped with state of the art combat armor with same battle prowess of a Valkyrie. But is that the whole story?
1. The Vikings

In the countless war against Honkai creatures, humanity had sacrificed much in order to win every war against them. Resources and every manpower were thrown into the war to make sure that humanity will prevail, no matter the cost…The most effective combatant against Honkai forces were known as Valkyries, women who adapted and attuned themselves with the power of Honkai energy in order to gain superhuman abilities and used that power in their fight.

The Valkyries were humanity best hope in order to fight Honkai creatures and days went by their number kept increasing with recruits who were eager to end the threat of Honkai. But it was clear that The Valkyries alone won't be enough to face the future threat where more enemies started to emerge from the shadows and the war start to turn worse for humanity.

One of them was the enigmatic organization with different agenda that called themselves Anti-Entropy, the organization's force appeared all over the world and sometimes interfered with the war against Honkai with their own military forces. To make matter worse, their stand in the war was unclear because they're fighting against Honkai but also would fight the forces of humanity in occasions.

With the Valkyries spread too thin in the frontlines, the organization that train and deploy Valkyries by name Schicksal comes out with new initiative. A force to accompany The Valkyries in their war against Honkai and Anti-Entropy, which won't hesitate to deploy right in the heart of enemy forces, with fierceness that match the strongest Honkai beast, possessing everything that would make them the perfect companion for the Valkyrie unit.

They will become Schicksal new edge in their war, their newest fighters equipped with the best technology and equipment that human civilization has. They will be known as the result of Project Asgard and they were called The Vikings, a group of male warriors who will be equipped with state-of-the-art combat armor.

The training plan was completed, recruits were taken from all over the world, the facility was accommodated to proceed with the project and as the wheel of destinies were in motion so does the fate of a young man. Being only fifteen, he had experienced the full brunt of Honkai invasion and live to tell the tale. He was but a civilian, who had to carve his own path to safety in honoring his family last wish. To survive and find happiness.

But before he fulfills that call of destiny, he first had to survive the war he caught in for the past week. The boy in question duck at nearby ruble as local militia and United Nations Armed Forces soldiers held their ground against the charging Honkai beast, every firearms pointed toward them from behind the hastily made barricades as they wait for the beasts to appear from the thick smokes resulted from their previous artillery bombardment.

"…Kid, you still with me?" A soldier asked the boy.

The boy looked at the UNAF soldier who was aiming his M16B Pulse Assault Rifle at the incoming Honkai creatures, the boy in question only nodded his head then aimed his own M16B at the creatures as he loaded the full magazine to his rifle and pulled the slide on the rifle's left side to load the first bullet into the firing chamber. He set the rifle safety to off and kept his finger on the trigger, his right eye set to look through the scope on top of the rifle.

"Yeah" The boy simply said.

"Good. I know this is sudden, but we need everyone that could fight" The soldier said to the boy.

"Don't worry, it's my own choice Corporal Vic…do you have any pointer for me?" The boy asked Vic.

"Yeah I do, it seems you know how to operate that gun. Just keep your head cool and don't waste your ammo by making every shot counts. Can you do that?" Vic asked the boy.

"Yes sir. I'll do my best" The boy said.

"You'll be fine Ryan" Vic said to Ryan.

Ryan, or the boy took deep breath as he looks through the reflex scope in his rifle. He saw huge amount of Honkai creatures advancing toward the barricades and for a moment he's not sure whether one magazine filled with forty-five 4.50mm caliber bullets will be enough to halt the enemy. But the first volley should be able to put down the zombies easily enough at least, what made him worry were the lines of the scythe wielding humanoid Honkai creatures behind them…The more sentient zombie or what the soldiers like to dubbed as The Reapers could shrug off quite number of bullets before they die and that was quite problematic for them.

Right now, they were in the western side barricade defending the only evacuation post left in the city after one week of heavy fighting on Southern Japan. Most of the population succumbed to the Honkai forces and the remaining desperately trying to stay alive by either running or helping the soldiers fight before they evacuate the city completely as militias. Ryan decided to board the last dropship with the other defenders as the final evacuation were proceeding, several hundred innocent lives weight on their shoulders as they prepared to fight off the approaching Honkai creatures.

"Incoming on Western barricade! That's quite a huge army approaching here!" One soldier said on the radio.

"Yeah but retreat is not an option. All units have checked in and multiple layers of barricade have been established. First defense line, you are to delay them as long as you can then retreat to join the secondary defense line and so on! Further orders will be given when tertiary defense line has been breached. This is it people, god help us all…Command out!" The local base commander said.

As soon as the order was given, the zombies start running at them when they detected their dinner entrenched in barricades with weapons aimed at them. Ryan steeled his nerve as he set the rifle fire mode from semi-automatic to fully automatic when he realized that the horde will require a full burst to take down. He's but an innocent boy before all of this, now he would have to cast that away…in the name of survival.

"Enemy in range! Fire at will!" One soldier shouted.

The soldier who shouted the order, The Captain then fired his rifle as indication to start the fight. Everyone including Ryan quickly joined him by firing at anything that moved in front of them which running that didn't look like a normal human. Two minutes into the fight and the charging enemy were disintegrated into nothingness, as the case with every Honkai creatures that died.

"That was…intense" Ryan said out loud.

"No kidding kid, this isn't the first time I'm on the hold out job but I still haven't get used to it" Vic said while reloading his rifle.

"That rough huh? Well, here they come again!" Ryan said as he saw another group charged at them.

The Reapers started their charge at them as the barricade defenders fired whatever weapon they had at the creatures. The problem this time was that the creature managed to reach the barricade and slashed several soldiers and militias into two due to their resilience, The Captain in charge saw the situation about to turn from bad to worse then decided to commence retreat, but before he could give the order however he saw something much more dangerous than the humanoid creature.

He saw a ten meters Honkai beast walking with four limbs with the two in the front being larger than he ones in the back, the true problem of that being their rifle would do absofuckinglutely no damage even if they fired at the beast. Classification of the beast being Chariot and it will require at least a mech to beat. They do have tanks on secondary and tertiary defensive line but that will also require intense firing before the beast could be killed.

"Retreat to the secondary defense line! Move your ass people, go go go!" The Captain shouted.

Hearing the order to retreat everyone begin their retreat by run and gun, they took turns to cover each other by firing and reloading in sync so they could always rain bullets at the approaching enemy. That would have been the plan, but that was completely irrelevant as the large beast begin to hunch over and unleashed large sonic wave at the retreating forces. Ryan and Vic being more attentive than the others decided to take cover behind a downed truck as the wave went past them, sending the others not so fortunate to the ground and to the even less fortunate where they were thrown at the nearby urban rubles resulting in damaged organ, broken bones to immediate death.

"Shit! That thing will kill us all!" Vic said while controlling his breath.

"W-What can we do to halt it!?" Ryan asked Vic.

"On normal circumstances, we need a mech. But we only got tanks and it will require intensive attack" Vic said grimly.

They continued running toward the secondary defense line and when they reach it they are greeted with hail of bullets. Ryan and Vic immediately duck for whatever cover available and that happens to be pile of rubles, the secondary defense line barricade stopped firing to checked their target and Vic looked out of the rubble while scowling at the soldiers on the barricade.

"Hey! Friendly fire!" Vic shouted at them.

"Really? So sorry mate, we got jumpy since our line were under attack so suddenly! Those zombies came out of nowhere!" One soldier said.

"Alright, we're coming in! Damnit, we would have been flanked if we kept holding the first defense line" Vic said in realization.

"It's just you and a kid, mate?" One of the soldier asked them.

"They didn't make it, we got a Chariot inbound to our location!" Vic said to the soldier.

They entered the second defense line and rejoined the holding troops in better barricade, this barricade were equipped with Heavy Machine Gun emplacements and Tanks prepared to laid waste their ammo at huge Honkai beast. One soldier who was holding M24 Bolt Action Sniper Rifle offered Ryan a packet of cigarettes before he realized that Ryan looked at him weirdly. The soldier realized what he did and quickly retracted the cigarettes before he offered a water canteen, Ryan took it without hesitation and drank.

"Thanks" Ryan said to the soldier.

"Anytime kid" The soldier said back.

They then saw the previous attacking Honkai creature approaching their position quickly, Ryan along several militias immediately opened fire and followed by the soldiers. But it's a losing fight as The Chariot Beast behind them approached their position, the beast single eye then glowed bright as a large red energy beam came out from it and hit Ryan right in the face.

BRAK!

"Son of a…"

Ryan fell from his own bed as he jumped awake from his flashback dream regarding the event that happened two years ago. He then decided to sat on the floor and looked outside through his bedroom window to realized that it's morning already, he checked the clock on bedside table and it shown 6.30 AM which mean he still had one hour to get ready before he had to attend school. Ryan then got up and headed to the kitchen to make some breakfast, when he opened the fridge however he frowned at the content…or lack of content of the fridge.

"…I guess I forgot to go shopping yesterday…If only the training goes well" Ryan said in melancholic tone.

Ryan went to the bathroom first to take a shower, brushed his teeth and took a quick inspection in the mirror. The reflection shown him that he's a handsome young man with spiky medium green hair and sharp crimson eyes, he would pass as a supermodel if not for the fact that something was missing from him…His right hand. Ryan look at the stump just below his elbow that used to be his right hand and the explanation would be the continuation of that dream, he did avoid that energy blast but at the cost his right hand and the M16B he carried disintegrated in the blast.

Deciding that reminiscing the past won't do anything except for depressing him, he decided to equipped his Saint Freya Academy Male High School Uniform which almost looked like the female version, the difference located in the torso design where the male variant resemble military officer dress and with pants instead of skirt. He stared at the uniform for a bit before he put it on, it's a bit hard to do that with a single arm.

Despite the academy did permit the student to customize their own uniform to promote individual artistic liberty, the male students which only consisted of thirty guys all agreed to retain almost the basic design and all of them colored it matte black. It gave them sense of unity and to compensated for the lack of ornaments on their dress, they added the patch of a white shield with two blue sea dragon encircled it…It was the logo of Project Asgard. The thirty males all Schicksal Far Eastern Branch Project Asgard recruits and they had to attend school at Saint Freya Academy to receive their education and training, the recruits being teenager was another reason why they were attending the private academy.

Anyway, Ryan was almost side tracked by his musing regarding their uniform, took his school bag and went out from his apartment room. He closed the door, locked it and immediately headed for school. Principal Theresa Kaslana requested his presence on her chamber this early in the morning, since he got nothing better to do then why not…Ryan did a think over, he's basically a disabled person yet Schicksal still included him as one of the Project Asgard recruits which didn't make any sense. They will be trained as soldiers, to fight Honkai beast even, sending a disabled man to the frontline would be very counterproductive…

Since Ryan had a lot on his mind, he failed to notice one of his neighbors curiously staring at him. The said neighbor was a beautiful girl who had long single braided white hair with aqua blue eyes, well developed body and wearing track suit while standing in the front of vending machine near the stairwell drinking canned sport drink. She's Saint Freya High School student by the name of Kallen Kaslana, she just finished her morning jog when she caught the sight of Ryan. Kallen wondered why Ryan would went to school so early in the morning, looking down casted too.

"…Ryan?" Kallen called him.

Kallen called Ryan caused him to raise his head from looking at the floor to the beautiful girl that called his name, Ryan's mouth immediately broke into a smile as he approached Kallen. Both of them were acquaintances and fellow neighbors because Kallen did live next door from him. Ryan just moved in a week ago and Kallen quickly became his first female acquaintance on the apartment complex.

"Why do you go early to school?" Kallen asked him.

"Apparently, your aunt requested my presence so early in the morning. I wonder what she wants" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Aunt Theresa did? It must be quite important" Kallen commented.

"I think so" Ryan nodded his head.

But, god of romantic comedy just had to mess with them so early in the morning by making Ryan stomach grumbled loudly and it immediately silenced both of them on the spot. Kallen was astonished with the possibility of Ryan didn't eat anything since yesterday while Ryan cursed his stomach internally for grumbling so loud in front of a beautiful girl. He skipped meals yesterday and only drink water, being too tired to even cook food he just went to sleep yesterday.

"When was the last time you eat something?" Kallen asked Ryan curiously.

"If I'm not wrong…Forty-eight hours ago?" Ryan answered the question.

"…You, haven't eat anything since two days ago!?" Kallen asked Ryan again.

"…I'll grab something on convenience store then" Ryan said while smiling bitterly.

Kallen knew that her dorm mates had prepared breakfast at this time in the morning and she thought on the possibility of Ryan joining them for breakfast, she can't just leave the young man go hungry on his way to school. She smiled at the thought and looked at Ryan who still in the middle of cursing his own stomach, can't it pick a better timing!?

"Ryan, we have meals back in our room. You should eat something first" Kallen said to Ryan.

"I wouldn't want to trouble you, Kallen. I'll be fine" Ryan said while smiling.

"Nonsense, come join us. I'm sure she won't mind…I can't just let you goes to school hungry, it is wrong for me personally" Kallen said while smiling back.

Ryan sensed that arguing against Kallen would cost any energy he had left in his body, plus she's offering what society would considered a free food and it's rude to turn down the offer for one without a good reason. He shrugged his shoulder before he smiled again at Kallen, she's good girl.

"Very well then, I'll take on the offer" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Splendid, follow me" Kallen said as she started walking.

Both of them then headed toward Kallen's room. When Ryan entered it for the first time he can't helped himself but to look around, the room was more decorated than his plain looking living room. With blue wall paint, wooden furniture and even flat screen TV on the living room. Plus, the room wasn't reeked with the smell of gunpowder and metal but that maybe because Ryan did have a workstation on one of the spare rooms…He should do something about that. Not long after Kallen opened the door, her dorm mate came out from the kitchen to greet her.

She's a beautiful Japanese teenager with waist long pink hair, possessing amethyst eyes and still wearing her pink pajamas. The girl named Sakura Yae, originally a young priestess residing in a remote village but Honkai invasion forced her to evacuate with her entire family. She then took the offer to study at Saint Freya Academy to become a Valkyrie due to her already strong combat ability coupled with how effective she could adapted with Honkai energy…The girl was polite, kind, caring and maybe a little violent when she required to. When she saw Ryan however, she immediately retreated back to the kitchen with inhuman speed. The reason being, she's still half asleep and haven't washed her face.

"Y-You brought Ryan here!? Why didn't you say so Kallen!" Sakura said to Kallen.

"Ahahaha! So sorry Sakura. It's quite sudden plan too" Kallen said while grinning.

"You could at least notify me so I could wash my face! Go to the dining table while I do just that will you?" Sakura said as she walked to the bathroom.

"Alright then. Hey Ryan, don't be shy. Have a seat" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Sure. Pardon the intrusion" Ryan nodded his head.

With that, both of them entered the apartment living room and Ryan was trying very hard not to look around the room conspicuously. It did looked more decorated and more comfortable than his own apartment, he seriously should do something about it. Ryan seated himself when he noticed that Kallen was rummaging at the cupboard, in the kitchen counter he could see three plates of fried rice complimented with eggs and sausage. Ryan stomach grumbled even louder than previously in the hallway, this time even Ryan cheeks went red a bit due to the shame. It got worse when he heard Kallen giggling at his condition, he just looked sideways due to the embarrassment.

"You're really hungry" Kallen commented while smiling.

"Yeah it seems I do…Don't know why I didn't eat yesterday" Ryan said to Kallen.

"What did you do anyway?" Kallen asked him.

"I…Uh, was fixing and tuning my pistol, it took a long time" Ryan said sheepishly.

"Oh, well as far as I knew member of Project Asgard were more focused on ranged combat…You guys look like special operation soldier compared to Valkyrie Unit which specialized in fighting Honkai creatures, we are trained directly to fight Honkai but you guys…also trained to kill human, while we are not" Kallen said to Ryan.

Kallen was an observant person so she often snuck a glance at how The Vikings were trained. They primarily fight with firearms though everyone had melee weapons as their standard load out, but they were rarely used. In one occasion she managed to saw their training, Viking recruits were taught on how to clear a room under thirty seconds and fought against human operators with their mission was to rescue hostages and defused a planted dummy bomb. That was why Kallen mentioned to Ryan that The Vikings looked more like a special operation soldier.

When they were trained to take down Honkai creatures however, they were taught differently from Valkyrie Unit. The Valkyries primarily operated within three-person team with different skill sets to made up for any vulnerabilities. The Vikings however operated in squad, each possessed ten operatives and they made up for their specialization by trading it with versatility in numbers. Vikings main weakness were the fact that they can't harnessed the power of Honkai directly so they required a medium to harness it and that was their combat armor. They took down Honkai beast with coordinated movement and teamwork.

"You knew about our training" Ryan commented with cocked eyebrows.

"Yes, I do" Kallen said while smiling.

Viking combat armor was designated with a codename Sleipnir. The humanoid armored combat exoskeleton possessed slim design that fully encased the operator within, they weren't bulky and possess excellent maneuverability's that didn't hindered the operator's movement speed but actually enhancing it. With the armor capable interpreting the nerve electrical impulses sent to the muscles, it provided easiness on moving though slim yet surprisingly quite heavy for its size and it had the feeling as if moving the operator own body. The under suit was made from vacuum sealed nano fiber that provided excellent durability and protection against natural or man-made hazard. The armor plating was made from carbon fiber weaved with kevlar alongside lightweight titanium plating that provide defenses as neck guard, torso, shoulder, arm, crotch and leg plating.

Slim armor capable pulling fast moves and hit hard, it also came equipped with many tools and gadgets. It had Heads Up Display on its helmet V shaped visor, built in flashlight on the helmet and supplemented with many sensors, built in radio, oxygen reserves for one hour, shoulder mount for several equipment or weapons and the most loved by the recruits and envied by the Valkyries, small jetpack with stabilizer points on the armor for short distance flight and mobility assist. The back mounted jetpack with additional booster on the feet and jet stabilizer on several part of the armor played important role in The Vikings excellent mobility.

All features of the armor required energy and that was supplied by a small Honkai Energy Generator. Being smaller and more efficient than a nuclear reactor, it was the perfect choice for the armor energy producer. The generator possessed four auxiliary battery cells which acted as power storage which double as failsafe incase the generator fails and the user still requires the armor's energy. It also acted as power adaptor, when the ability of the armor was used the armor would draw power from the batteries instead of the generator, when the battery ran out of power the armor would proceed to recharged the battery automatically. The recharge process only took several seconds but it hindered The Vikings capability, they dubbed it as 'Cool down' period as consequences for using the armor without paying attention to the energy level.

The cool down system could be overridden by a protocol codenamed Odin's Wrath, the recruits also gave it name such as Gungnir Overdrive. It overrode every safety system implemented for regular use. Meaning, its full power was unleashed where the armor strength limiter were completely removed. It will enhanced the operator strength to the point becoming a monster themselves and the power for the armor will be derived directly from the generator, it's full combat capability made the operator capable on taking on large Honkai beast by themselves.

But the cost was enormous, the overworked nervous system of the operator will strain itself to the point it could cause paralysis, the muscles could tear due to overstress and it could result in the death of the operator. The test conducted by the Schicksal prove that normal human could only last five minutes using the armor overdrive function without additional penalties, some precaution could be taken so this limit would be irrelevant but so far no one had willing to sign up for the test.

"I'm more concerned regarding that Saint Freya Academy is actually all girls school before we come in…Social dynamics in there change so fast" Ryan said while leaning on the seat.

"Indeed. But don't worry, everything still under control" Kallen said to Ryan.

Thirty boys in all girl's academy really did caused a stir in social dynamics there, most of the boys didn't have a problem if they want to get a girlfriend with lots of beautiful girls attending the academy. The problem being, the girls could get a bit aggressive or too shy because they rarely see a boy of their age in close proximity…To make matter a bit complicated, most of the boys were hell bent on focusing more on the project instead pursuing their romantic matter. It was caused by the project rough start, they were civilians who will be trained to be the best of the best so they must adapt quickly with the training method or they are a washout.

Ryan being a disabled person surprisingly able to perform in all training activity, though not as fast as the others due to his disability. Plus, they still haven't found a way to bond and acted like a complete unit. The training were still on individual phase but it will be a problem in the future. Oh, if anyone ask why Ryan so stressed about this? It's because he's the leader for the Project Asgard recruits.

"Do you mind a bit to wait for Sakura before eating?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Oh not at all, it will be rude not to do so" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Okay…Hmm, where's your handgun?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"In my holster, why?" Ryan asked back.

"Can I see it for a bit?" Kallen asked Ryan.

Ryan said nothing but he does reach for his back where his pistol was attached to a special sheath on his belt, he then took it out and handed it over to Kallen. Ryan pistol was called M1911 Heavy Variant where it possessed the same destructive power as other hand cannons available, the pistol had capacity of eight rounds. Easy to handle with moderate recoil even for a hand cannon, it was Ryan's favorite sidearm and he's absolute beast wielding it. Some Valkyries who saw him on target practice session dubbed him as 'Saint Gunslinger' due to his ability to empty entire magazine under three seconds and eliminated eight targets despite being a disabled person.

"M1911 Heavy Variant huh…You made some modification with this one, the barrel is a bit longer and you put on muzzle break" Kallen said.

"Yeah, had to make it controllable with my uh…condition" Ryan said while shruging.

"I understand. Though if I may suggest, installing extended magazine may help you a bit with the reloading. I see you used magazine belt for easy reload, it would allow you more shot before having to reload too" Kallen said to Ryan.

"I'll think about it. Extended mag has ten bullets, much easier to calculate in firefight too" Ryan said to kallen.

Sakura appear from the bathroom and she looked even more beautiful after washing her face, she immediately took her share and set it down on the table. Sakura briefly look at Kallen and Ryan portion and noticed that they haven't even touch it.

"You waited for me?" Sakura asked them.

"Well of course, Sakura. Now come on let's eat" Kallen said.

They immediately said their prayers and begun eating their breakfast. Ryan had to use combination of dignity, manners, self-control and willpower not to scarf down the food like some hungry animal. He tried hard to eat it slowly and to savor the taste, he had to be honest though because the fried rice was heavenly good. Maybe it had something to do with his hunger but ah he didn't give a damn anymore, free food was meant to be savored.

"Who made this?" Ryan asked the girls.

"It was me. How is it if I may ask? Kallen always said that it's good but so far, she would classify anything I made with good no matter how bad it is" Sakura asked while smiling.

"Hey now, to be honest, it was all good. Ryan here could testify for my opinion" Kallen said to Sakura.

"Kallen is right. This is good, Sakura. I'm amazed" Ryan said to Sakura.

"I see, thank you" Sakura said while smiling.

Ryan pick the pacing of his eating and finish it before Kallen or Sakura eat half of their portion, he then sheathed his gun and stood up. That was quite a fulfilling meal he got there, perhaps he could somehow repay them for their kindness later?

"I'm really sorry about this but I have to go quickly, Principal Theresa expect me. I'll make it up to you both later" Ryan said to Kallen and Sakura.

"It's alright. See you at school" Sakura said to Ryan.

"Yeah, see you" Kallen said while waving her left hand.

"Sure" Ryan nod his head.

Ryan immediately exited the apartment and headed for Saint Freya Academy. Meanwhile on Principal Chamber, Theresa Kaslana currently sat and read through a report provided by the trainers of The Vikings. Yesterday was a disaster according to her, they barely got through a simulated combat against Honkai beast without almost total annihilation. Only Ryan and several others made it to the end, then again those who survived were proven as survivors before joining the program so they at least possessed some combat experience. Several others were not and they still struggled for firing their weapon accurately, even though the helmet HUD provide weapon reticle for easy aiming.

Though Theresa attention was specifically on someone by the name Ryan Taurus, the green haired teen who was nominated to be the leader of The Viking recruits. He was dubbed by the girls as 'Saint Gunslinger' due to his marksmanship, not only his marksmanship but his close quarter combat capability was not to be underestimated. His condition though hindered him from performing with his top performance, something Theresa wished to remedy so he could fight with full capability. She heard the door of her office being knocked and Theresa put down her tablet.

"It's open" Theresa said out loud.

"Pardon the intrusion. I got what you wanted" A woman said.

The one who entered the room was a voluptuous red haired with gold eyes girl by the name Himeko Murata, she held the rank Major and acted as instructor for The Valkyries. Himeko put something on Theresa's table and it revealed to be a file regarding Ryan Taurus, Himeko then stand beside Theresa as she looks outside the window. Theresa immediately opened the file as she read through the content, this got Himeko's attention as she stared at her.

"Why are you interested in him, Principal Theresa?" Himeko asked her.

"…Believe it or not, I saw a lot of potential in him. But his condition limits him, I want to remedy that so he could lead our Viking recruits better…He'll probably need a mentor for that" Theresa said while she kept reading.

"He's cute. Maybe we could ask Siegfried Kaslana to teach him?" Himeko asked Theresa.

"Siegfried? No, no, I could smell disaster before it even happens. Cecilia is good candidate but the way she fights is a bit different from him" Theresa said while smiling a bit.

"But you have to admit, Theresa. There's not many experienced fighters left, Siegfried-san is one of the veteran of Second Honkai War so I believe he could be a good mentor. Plus, both of them use handguns…Though I believe Ryan is more flexible in handling any firearms" Himeko commented.

Himeko statement was based on her observation when she saw Ryan actually capable using assault rifle and sniper rifle though he can't reload it effectively. Himeko read Ryan's profile before delivering it to Theresa because she got curious and the file access was within her authority. Ryan Taurus was born on 9th August 1998, he lived on Southern Japan for most of his life when Honkai invasion struck the small town he inhabited. His family was presumably killed in their attempt to escape and Ryan volunteered to help the defending United Nations Army unit to hold the small town against waves of Honkai creatures.

Survivor reported that despite being only fifteen, Ryan already shown his prowess in combat and tactics plus reports said that he was seen as a capable commander. He personally helped the UNAF to get the citizens evacuated by running diversion operation, high risk infiltration mission deep into Honkai creatures' territory and almost suicidal direct assault. He did that with limited resources available to him and still manage to pull it off, Himeko was astonished to say the least. In her twenty-one years of life, she had acquired many experiences in combat and the guy she looked only seventeen years old managed to pull it off quite well.

"I see…Well, I'll think about it later. In the meantime I already summoned him here but it seems he's a bit late" Theresa said.

"What do you call him for?" Himeko asked Theresa.

"A proposal for mechanical arm…Our R&D lab manages to acquire the necessary data from Anti-Entropy research outpost raid several weeks ago, we manage to design a prototype version but we require a subject. Seeing Ryan's state, it could be mutually beneficial agreement" Theresa said to Himeko.

"Oh, is that so" Himeko commented.

There's another knocking on the door and this time Theresa know it was Ryan. Himeko looked at Theresa before she nodded in affirmation that she will help her explain the situation and Theresa announced that the door is unlocked. The door was opened as Ryan stepped into the room and it was the first time both of them saw him in relaxed expression as most of the time they see him with hardened and serious expression, in their defense they never saw him laughing his ass off when he watched comedy show on TV several days ago that briefly startled Kallen and Sakura next door during their drama marathon. Ryan was nervous to be sure but he has to stay calm. Well he didn't expect that the principal of the academy was actually a short woman dressed in nun's outfitting, in his defense he never saw Theresa goes out wearing casual clothes that made her looked like a middle school student.

"Ryan Taurus?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"Yes ma'am" Ryan answered.

"Take a seat please" Theresa said to Ryan.

Ryan proceed to sat in the chair on front the headmistress table. He noticed Himeko stared at him with unknown glint in her eyes and decided to ignore her for now, he then got a good glimpse on Theresa. Like the rumor said, it seems that every Kaslana indeed had white hair and blue eyes. Theresa would fit in the category of cute legal loli-

"I've been monitoring your training activity since you entered this academy. I have to say, for a volunteer who survived Southern Japan Honkai Invasion but has record of high-risk operations you're pretty much unknown to the world…There's only two files we have on you, judging by your activity, Schicksal should have at least ten" Theresa begun the talk.

"Most of my action during that time were off the record, Ms. Theresa. What you have on the file is the statement of several people who witnessed the event themselves, am I correct?" Ryan asked her.

"Correct. Your condition happened because of the last evacuation effort were thrown in disarray when one Honkai Chariot class shows up. The energy blast coming from the beast took your right hand…I want to remedy that, so I have a proposition for you" Theresa said to Ryan.

This was the first time Ryan met with the headmistress and she already had a proposition for him? Ryan couldn't helped himself but to felt that this was more than meets the eye, but he almost doesn't have anything worth to barter if the proposition required a payment. Hell, his source of income was actually from working part time as web developer and that didn't even pay that well. He barely able to eat, buy medicine and other necessities. Luckily, ammo were available on the academy and supplemented daily.

Ryan sat still in front of Theresa for few seconds, trying to analyze the situation. Theresa in the meantime managed to get a good look on Ryan and she had to admit, the young man in front of her was quite the looker. His silk spiky medium dark green hair, sharp crimson eyes that could pierce any soul and he look like a Caucasian…His file records that he was born on Japan southern region, but it seems his parent was Caucasian and hell, he's 183 centimeters tall-

"So, what's your proposition?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"…Schicksal Research and Development Division acquire the schematics for mechanical arm prototype but they don't have a subject for direct testing" Theresa said to Ryan.

"I know where this is going" Ryan commented.

"Oh, you do? Splendid, then what is your answer?" Theresa asked Ryan.

A prototype for mechanical arm? Well, at least Ryan could have his right-hand functioning again and that's a good news. Though what's the payment for the privilege? He did learn that nothing in this world was free, the hard way, but that was a story for another time. Right now, he had to prepare his bargaining chip which was to be honest, not much.

"What's the catch?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"You just have to wear it and do your activity normally" Theresa said.

And that manage to shattered Ryan's train of thought with the unexpected brain crash he experienced that instant…Let him get this straight, The Schicksal is completely willing to build a prototype mechanical arm and hand it over to him for free? Maybe he didn't hear it right, maybe Kallen or Sakura spiked his breakfast with something so he's hallucinating.

"Wait, that's all?" Ryan muttered.

"What? You really think I will charge you a fee for the mechanical arm while knowing that you were broke? What kind of heartless woman I am?" Theresa's left eye twitched a bit.

"Ouch…That did stings" Ryan said while cringing.

"I'm sorry to say but reality did sucks. Now, what do you say?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"Do you had to ask? Of course, I agree. Thanks for giving me the opportunity" Ryan said gratefully.

"Your welcome, Ryan. Now, I believe Major Himeko here have a thing or two she wants to speak with you" Theresa said while looking at Himeko.

Ryan in turn looked at Himeko and his male testosterone fueled instinct directed his eyes immediately to dart toward the twin melons which half closed by the cloth the major wear, since he's a normal hormonal high school boy he can't helped himself when he noticed large twin mountain of male joy and hope being presented in front of him. Of course, Himeko and Theresa immediately noticed this and both of them have their own reactions, Himeko being flattered by the looks while Theresa questioned why the hell was she a flat chested woman…Every Kaslana women has decent to huge boobs! Why was she the only one?!

"Like what you see, hmm?" Himeko asked in seductive tone.

Every instinct inside Ryan screamed at him not to fall down into the abyss of temptation just by looking at huge boobs such as in front of him, Ryan fake coughed immediately while pulling off his best innocent and polite smile that somehow just made the room brighter for a bit.

"Ah, I'm sorry for that" Ryan played it cool.

"Since you're cute, I don't mind" Himeko winked at Ryan.

"…So, you like them big huh" Theresa said while frowning.

"Well…It's not I dislike the small one too. I'm a man who didn't judge woman by their chest only" Ryan shrugged while smiling.

Theresa sat still for a bit before she suddenly smirking devilishly, though it's only for split second and Ryan didn't notice her. Himeko put something down on the table in front of Ryan, it's Ryan's student data which he had to fill before he entered the academy. There's a section which highlighted in red marking, it's about his crimson blood eyes regarded under category 'special condition' just under his disabled right hand.

"Your eyes, tell me about it" Himeko said to Ryan.

"I thought I already told everyone on that file" Ryan said with cocked eyebrows.

"Well, it's always a good idea to learn it directly from the source" Himeko answered him.

Ryan eyes were originally dark green in coloring, but one encounter during his survival fights changed that. That was the first time he encountered Anti-Entropy organization where he was forced to fight humans for the first time, during the ensuing battle the Honkai beast had to join the fray and the battle become complicated fast. Before Ryan able to escape, an unknown Honkai beast appeared before him and stared at him directly.

The stare produced a bright light that was so intense it rewritten his DNA where it also acted as mutagen, transforming him in just seconds. Ryan DNA was attuned so his body capable to adapt with using Honkai energy naturally but at the cost of transforming into a mutant, he's able to reverted back into human by draining his body of Honkai energy but the process required him to vent it somehow. He found a method by firing it to the sky, often creating small pillar of light and so far, it worked well.

The transformation had a side effect, his eyes undergoes a mutation where he could basically 'sees' Honkai energy transmission even at small quantity and that changed his irises to crimson red. With his condition and encounter with the unknown beast, he should have been imprisoned and experimented upon to replicate his condition. But, Schicksal immediately took custody on him and assured every faction in their side that he will be put to use as better subject on experimental Viking program with promises he will be under control so he won't become a threat to Schicksal and its allies.

"Basically, everything I knew is written there, no more, no less. Had if knew, I would tell you already" Ryan said while frowning a bit.

"Does it hurt?" Himeko asked Ryan.

"No, it doesn't, except for the part being able to see Honkai energy transmission unwillingly, everything is fine" Ryan said to Himeko.

"I see. One more thing before you head to class…could you participate in a mock battle this afternoon against multiple team of Valkyries? Your entire platoon is required to participate" Himeko proposed the plan to him.

Mock battle against the Valkyries? Why would they do that? They have different training agenda and Ryan was almost sure that Valkyries weren't taught on how to battle an army of soldiers as a single platoon, none of them had central commanding officer that coordinates the entire platoon but each team leader could cooperate to act by the order of an officer if necessary…But Ryan saw where this going and what Himeko actually wanted.

She knew about Vikings lack of individual skills with the training they did only involving target practice it won't make any significant progress, they need a real combat scenario to give them the picture of the battlefield. At the same time, Valkyries were individually strong and with small teams they were capable on covering up any weaknesses they might have. But put them as a single combat unit of multiple teams, it might become a hindrance due to them usually put to combat with small teams with different assignment from each other so it will become hard to coordinate effectively as a unit with no clear chain of command.

Regardless if this method could work or not, they would need to put this to the test first. Will the Vikings accept the challenge though? They sure will, Ryan could be quite persuasive if he wanted to and smooth talker was one of his strong points. Himeko really did come up with this idea just this morning when she met with Cecilia Kaslana in the department store, Cecilia mentioned one of the heavy fights that happened during Second Honkai war involving renegade human group that ambushed her S Rank Valkyries. While extremely strong, talented and well trained, they couldn't have helped themselves to get nailed to the wall due to the teamwork the renegade group used. They were able to counter attack when the attention was taken by non-other than Siegfried Kaslana who were searching for his wife position on GPS.

That gave her the idea to do this, Theresa made a small note to watch the fight alongside Cecilia, Siegfried and ordered for beer and snacks delivery toward the supervising room. The fight will happen on nearby training field that Saint Freya Academy owned so it's equipped with tons of camera and several camera drones, it will be a fight to see. Ryan just had to agree to this, he will make sure their team wins.

"I know where you are going with this, Major" Ryan said to Himeko confidently.

"Oh, are you now?" Himeko coyly asked him.

"Believe me, I do and I accept. I will inform my men and Ms. Fuuka regarding this match" Ryan said to Himeko.

"Understood. No more question from me" Himeko said to Ryan.

"You're free to go, Ryan" Theresa said to Ryan.

"Then excuse me" Ryan bowed a bit.

Ryan got up and immediately exited the room, Himeko sigedh in relief while Theresa stared at her. Himeko noticed the stare then cocked one of her eyebrows that indicates her confusion, Theresa then decided to ask Himeko immediately because she had a feeling that Himeko had other intention behind the supposed match between Valkyries and Vikings.

"Come on, spill it already. I know that this match will improve the disadvantages between each unit, but I know that you have something hidden for this one" Theresa said to Himeko.

"Sharp as ever huh Theresa…I won't lie that I considered Viking unit to be unsuited for fighting Honkai beast and they are more specifically trained to take down human enemies…If they have to fight a Valkyrie, will they stand a chance? Or will the girls have to suffer defeat?" Himeko said her concern.

Theresa now understood on what part of Himeko's theory she's trying to test, if Vikings proven to be quite effective as Valkyrie eliminator then it was possible that they will be used to stop any rogue Valkyrie in the future. Schicksal High Command were in chaos several years ago when several rogue Valkyries made a huge mess on Black Forest area on Germany, they were involved with Anti-Entropy and they manage to escape with several important data required on developing a mechanized walker.

Lack of any specialized combat unit at that time resulted Schicksal had to send another Valkyries on the hunt for the rogues, the resulting battle did manage to eliminate the rogues but at the cost of severe casualties and the data were lost to enemy hands. Many figures in Schicksal thinks that The Vikings were supposed to be their failsafe incase another Valkyries gone rouge, if they do then Vikings anti-personnel capabilities will be required to subdue or eliminate the rogue Valkyries.

Those that suspicious of the program true objective including Theresa didn't voice their opinion, the reason being it was absolutely required because when the situation happened they will want a specialized force that fit for the task. Furthermore, the rapidly rising encounter with Anti-Entropy forces did caused Valkyries to be deployed more often and that will strain Schicksal combat power if they were spread too thin. It is another reason why The Vikings would be needed from now on.

"You know as much as I do that they will be specialized in anti-personnel elimination than Honkai beast killer…They will be our edge when we have to deal with Anti-Entropy units" Theresa said to Himeko.

"I do hope that none of our students gone rouge…I doubt they won't send the Vikings to hunt them down if that happens" Himeko said to Himeko.

"I agree on that" Theresa said somberly.

.

Meanwhile, Ryan managed to reach his quite wide classroom where the rest of his fellow students were present. The class were consisted mix of Valkyries and Vikings around seventy people in auditorium styled classroom, Ryan immediately went to the seat of one particular person in the class. Fuuka, the class representative of the first year sat near the back while reading a novel she brought with her today. The dark grey-haired girl with blue eyes wearing red glasses was quite immersed with the story that she didn't notice Ryan approaching her, Ryan seeing the girl won't break her concentration anytime soon decided to do the more daring approach.

"Fuuka-san, I got something I need to talk with you" Ryan said to Fuuka.

Fuuka's eyes then darted toward Ryan who was currently standing beside her desk, she noticed that Ryan also holding what appears to be his bag and that indicates that he just got inside the classroom.

"Ryan-kun, class will begin in around ten minutes. Is this talk will take that long?" Fuuka asked him.

"I don't think so but that depends on your answer" Ryan said to Fuuka.

A bit far from there, several boys currently gathered while looking at the scene between Ryan and Fuuka. They were the ones dubbed as Viking Lieutenants where they were basically the leaders of the Viking Squads, they were Ryan's direct subordinates due to his limited combat ability so receiving orders to make sure the job get done were the lieutenant's job.

"Look, Ryan and Fuuka-san" Gin said.

Gin Yamato, Japanese teen with silver hair and purple eyes that survived the whole Southern Japan Honkai Invasion. Among the Vikings, he's the one who had known Ryan the longest. Having fought beside him since he was rescued by the young man himself, he's Ryan reliable second in command of the whole platoon and damn good best friend. Gin was also the only one who could stand toe to toe with Ryan at his full capability and he without doubt acknowledged as his right-hand man by everyone.

"Wow, really? What do you think they are talking about?" Han wondered.

Han Muller, Germany teen with light brown hair and blue eyes who signed up for the program due to surviving direct combat with Chariot Class beast by improvising a makeshift bomb. He's also known for his intelligence and tactical sense, making him an important member of the platoon. He often gave tactical advice to Ryan and with his vast knowledge and high IQ, his advice often saved the whole platoon from failure. He's also known as Ryan left hand man, supporting the others with his combination of brain and brawn.

"A duel?" Agus said out loud.

Agus Saputra, orphaned Indonesian teenager with jet black hair and amethyst eyes due to collateral damage of battle between Anti-Entropy and Schicksal fleets of ships. The young man was picked up by Schicksal evacuation ship and then decided to join the program, he's shown aptitude with sniper rifle as he possesses good eyesight, patience and good decision making. His good aim and observant eye will be the key in operation that will require precision in the future, he's the vanguard of the Vikings and he's damn good at it.

"Not that I didn't believe in Ryan but he will have his ass handed to him" Rahn said while snickering.

Rahn Killian, young American athlete with light blue hair and emerald eyes that competed in Japan but got trapped in the whole invasion. He lost his entire team and stuck without a way home for weeks before he was contacted by Schicksal who saw potential in him and offered him a position as a Viking, Rahn who lost almost everything vowed to avenge his team and made sure that no one had to go through what he experienced. He gladly accepted the position and given his athletic agility, his excellent mobility and possessed natural talent for moving through difficult terrain, he alongside Agus was the platoon vanguard. The combination both of them had made a force to reckoned with, Vikings vanguards were no joke

"Well lad, I believe it wasn't a duel. Ryan using his charm to seduce our class rep" James said while smiling.

James Waterson, a British teenager with dark purple hair and grey eyes who apparently, had a knack for close quarter fight. James was the only son from a wealthy family, he's the result of a classical scandal between the house master and his maid. Although living among the wealthy, he's never acknowledged by his father's family due to shame. He's forced to grow up and trained to properly be a gentleman but at the same time as vicious as a wolf by his uncle. Multiple times he fought and won against school bullies was the proof of that. When Schicksal came to him with a proposal, James who was tired of constantly being neglected by his father immediately agreed and took off for Japan.

"Really? I don't think so. The man is not the one who just get laid with someone randomly" Igor said while folding his arms.

Igor Kamarov, a young man with short black hair and blue eyes was the lone survivor of a cruel child soldier program held by terrorist group in Ural Mountains. He was abducted during elementary school and harshly trained by the terrorist group in the art of guerilla warfare, bomb crafting, physical and mental conditioning, vehicle hijacking and undercover techniques. During the firefight with UNAF, he was wounded but also saved by Schicksal Valkyries who tagged along with them. Grateful for second chance to live, he immediately accepted the invitation to be a Viking. He's a bit stoic, but he's proven to be an absolute beast in combat and that fact alone gave sense of safety to his comrades who fought beside him.

"What do you think?" Ryan asked Fuuka.

"I found that match to be too time consuming, besides you Vikings had the advantage in this fight" Fuuka said to Ryan.

Anyway, Ryan explained everything to Fuuka regarding the match and possible intention behind it. Fuuka did listened but seriously considering the match to be a hassle to their training program, but that wasn't what made her reject the match. Truth to be told, Fuuka always uneasy around Ryan who seemed to held back during training or class. He had average grades yet the man was actually quite intelligent and full of ideas sometimes, he held back during their platoon training where he prefers to command his men but that did proof on how intelligent he was as he also does that to hide his true combat ability.

The only time he didn't held back was at shooting range, there he proof his own prowess by displaying his weapon handling…Too many mysteries for one man, Fuuka wasn't sure too if he's a friend or a foe because she read his file. That kind of transformation could potentially make him turn on them. But that's her being unreasonable, the only reason logical enough was that she currently experiencing mood swings due to being on period. Ryan seriously don't have the time to persuade their class representative to agreeing with deploying alongside her Valkyries.

To be honest, the Valkyries didn't need her approval to participate in this kind of event but The Valkyries respected her strength and generally followed her decision. So, the logic, want the Valkyries to cooperate and go all out? Ryan had to persuade Fuuka first. Ryan went toward Fuuka and lifted her chin with his left hand so she could focused on the conversation instead of her novel, Fuuka gasped in surprise followed by the whole class attention turned toward Ryan and Fuuka conversation with several surprised gasps and low murmurs…Ryan seemed want to kill himself by pulling that maneuver.

"…Alright, Ms. Fuuka. I'm keeping this simple. We're helping each other here so why don't you agree to this match first and you can see the benefit of it yourself, it may take the whole afternoon but I'll say it will benefit us greatly in the end. Do we have a deal?" Ryan asked while smirking.

Fuuka was absolutely left speechless even though she was known for her composure and coolness, the handsome guy in front of her dare to held her chin and asserted dominance over her! The bold action of Ryan startled The Vikings in the class as they looked at Ryan like he had challenged a goddess in a direct fight, the girls cannot believe their eyes that someone had the courage to go against the first year number one student directly!

"…Fine, if you insist, Mr. Taurus. The girls will participate in this match. Now would you please let go of my chin already?" Fuuka asked Ryan.

"Oh sure, milady…I know you're currently in your period but please bear with it, alright?" Ryan winked at Fuuka.

What Ryan received for an answer however was a death glare coming from Fuuka steely blue eyes and the light reflecting on her glasses enhanced the sharpness of her stare, but Ryan wasn't fazed one bit due to the stare of that unknown creature who changed him were even more frightening than her eyes. That may didn't work on Ryan, but unfortunately it did for the rest of the students in the class as unconsciously all of them started sweating a bit due to the menacing glare. They're about to continue conversing before the bell rings, indicating the lesson about to begin. Ryan got what he needed so he only shrugged and smiled at Fuuka before he joined his fellow Vikings.

"…Is he what we call 'god among men'?" Han asked the others.

"…I believe so" Agus said to Han.

"Teach me your ways, Master Taurus!" James said while smirking.

"You know, when he pulled that move I thought we had to prepare a burial" Rahn said to Igor.

"Believe me, I thought the same thing" Igor said to Rahn.

Ryan approached them as his lieutenants kept asking him question or commenting on his stunt that he just pulled few seconds ago, Gin looked toward Fuuka for a bit before nudging Ryan in the side to get his attention. It worked as Ryan stop talking and looked at Gin with one eyebrow raised.

"…Damn, you did it. Now the girls will kill us" Gin said to Ryan.

"I got your back, Gin. Don't worry about getting murdered in the match I'm about to tell you later" Ryan said to Gin.

"I know. Anyway, did you do that on purpose? Or is the kind of in the heat of a moment kind of thing?" Gin asked him.

"You know me Gin, just combination of both" Ryan said before he seated himself.

What Ryan miss was the fact that Fuuka looked outside of the classroom with a bit of a blush on her cheeks and a tiny smile, the second fact was Kallen and Sakura were in shock when Ryan swoop in and pulled his little stunt as they thought Ryan wasn't a romantic guy, the third fact was someone with white hair styled in twin braids and blue eyes had her mouth agape in complete disbelieve while talking to her friend when she noticed that stunt.

And with it, their class begin…After school and every male student already got out from class, The Valkyries stayed behind to discuss on what Ryan said to Fuuka earlier in the morning. This time even Himeko joined in while saying that 'it's her idea' after all so she should be there to help the Valkyries preparing for their battle.

"What Ryan Taurus proposed to me is a match between us Valkyries and Vikings in a simulated battle, what we agreed on is that we will perform the match in assault mode. That means there will be the defender and the assaulter, it was determined by a coin toss before our class ended and it was decided we would be the defender. Bronya, do you have the map data?" Fuuka begun the talk.

The one Fuuka mentioned was a short girl with dark grey-hair tied in twin tail drill style with steel grey eyes by the name Bronya Zachik, she stood up and headed to the podium before activating her wrist holographic projector. The projector activated and it shows the battle map, it was a forested area with small abandoned factory in the middle of the map. The map also divided into two with a small river that ran along the center of the map, it also shown that there's small plains in the western and northern side while the eastern and south side is heavily forested area.

"Yes. The scenario is the defending team is evacuating and will have to hold out until we could send evacuation signal. The map shows that the defenders will start on the center of the map where we will hold dummy Honkai Energy Generator, given enough time the generator will generate enough power to allow us use the local satellite dish to signal for evac dropship. We have to hold the factory at all cost" Bronya said to the girls.

"Agreed. There are two objectives which is equally important, they are required for defenders to win the match. The first is Honkai Energy Generator, without this then the dish won't have enough power to send out our evacuation request. Second, we lose the dish then the generator would be useless too as without the dish then we will be stranded there. Being the defender is the hard one in this as we would have to eliminate the entire assaulter, I say this because our enemy today is the boys" Fuuka said to the girls.

Most of the girls know what Fuuka means, the boys might not look like it but they were versatile bastards. They know how to use guns and swords, the only hope they had was to overwhelm them with numbers or hit them with enough brute force to eliminate all of them at once. But that will be a colossal task, after all they didn't have what the Viking had in advantage and that's coordination. Even though not yet fully in sync, they trusted their leader and that's what makes them deadly.

"All of you have probably realized this, The Vikings are more specialized as anti-personnel commandos instead of Honkai beast slayer. Even though most of their training when facing Honkai beast almost cost them their entire platoon, they can't be underestimated. The only way for us to defeat them is to overwhelm them but before they could be turned into disarrayed mob, we need to take off their head" Fuuka said further.

Bronya then set her hologram projector to display Ryan Taurus picture in full body. In the picture, Ryan was wearing his Sleipnir armor which was matte black in coloring, his stump on his right hand was very noticeable due to the tightness of his under suit and the fact that his suit right hand part was attached to his right arm so it won't flail around. His left hand held his helmet with blue tint visor which was a double featured full-faced helmet, but the helmet in the picture has its mouth guard retracted that resulted in a helmet where it covered the eyes with the visor but expose the user's mouth and nose.

"You all know who he is and what he's capable to do. Do not underestimate him, not even for one bit. He's our primary target when Vikings shows up, do not hold back" Fuuka said to the girls with serious expression.

Bronya changed the image of Ryan to the next one but what appear was the picture of half-naked Ryan in short pants alongside his fellow Vikings jogging on the academy tracks, the picture really shown how ripped Ryan muscle actually underneath his clothes, that immediately made several girl blushes brightly and several others even asking for a copy to the surprised and flustered Bronya who turned out to forgot to delete the photo after receiving it from the academy media club. Fuuka could only sighed, would these girls will be able to fight that handsome man when the time comes?

.

"Mate. There's no way we could hurt them beauties!" James said to Ryan.

"I know, I know. Yet, we basically had no choice in this. It's for our own improvement too" Ryan said.

The boys were currently in the school armory which was their unofficial base of operation, all of the Vikings already gathered there totaling thirty boys who were already donned their armor. Ryan told them about what they would do and their reaction were mixed, some fine with fighting girls while several others said that it goes against their morale code. Regardless, Ryan needed them in fighting shape so he will used his best persuasion method against them…

"Listen well my fellow Vikings…I understand your dilemma but I will say this, we will face them beautiful girls with resolve and courage! It doesn't matter if you agree or not for us as man to fight girls, women like men with resolve and the courage to do what needs to be done! Winning this fight or not, they won't hate you just because of this match! In fact, this could be our chance to prove ourselves! We will show them girls what is a unit of humanities first Viking soldiers capable to do, so get your fangs out soldiers and if we win then hell, we might even get that permission to participate in deployment mission for experience sake!" Ryan said to his fellow Vikings.

"You really believe that, sir?" One of them asked Ryan.

"I believe in trying and doing my best! One of these days we need to prove ourselves, we got the chance earlier than expected and that's a good thing…We will know what's our weakness based on this battle and with it, we could improve ourselves!" Ryan said out loud.

The Vikings looked at each other before they nodded their heads and they saluted at Ryan, Viking saluted by tighten their fist and put them on their chest. Gin approached Ryan and handed him over the tablet that contained information regarding the map data, Ryan took it and he put in on the armory holographic projector and it appeared as floating holographic 2D map.

"So, what should we do boss?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Alright first things first, I'd like to hear what you think on this Han. We're the assaulter, any ideas?" Ryan asked him.

"The map shows clear plains on north and western side while the southern and eastern side is heavily forested area. Our objective will be in the center where it's an abandoned factory used by the defenders to broadcast evacuation request, we need to take out the generator or the satellite dish in the factory…I'd recommend eastern or southern approach due to the terrain" Han said to Ryan.

"Alright. What about finishing off the entire enemy forces?" Gin asked Han.

"I like the way you think, but no. As you can see, the ladies got Fuuka who could probably tear us a new hole all by herself. Finishing off entire forces would be counterproductive as I believe we all will probably got massacred before we even got close to her" Han said then shrugged.

The boys knew this too damn well, Fuuka martial prowess outmatched thirty Vikings was a very likely scenario as she categorized as an A rank Valkyrie that also had access to more dangerous mission than they could do currently. By ranking, The Vikings also divided into two categories, Combat Unit and Specialist Unit. Combat Unit were the core of the platoon where it composed of twenty frontline soldier, Ryan and his lieutenants were considered combat unit. Specialist Unit were those who have more specialized role such as medic, engineer, demolition expert, field scientist and Intel Acquisition totaling ten soldiers.

"What about if my fellow snipers and I took her out from afar?" Agus proposed his idea.

"Good idea, then again we're not the only ones who has sniper in the ranks…Agus, get your guns, you're our tip of the spear. If you spot her, don't hesitate" Ryan said to Agus.

"Consider it done" Agus salute at Ryan.

"…What's the plan then, comrade?" Igor asked Ryan.

"I got three plans, one main and two backups in this case. Let's review it" Ryan said to The Vikings.

God knows what kind of battle plan Ryan and Fuuka had in their minds but one thing was clear, they won't back down and will fight with full force when the time comes. Little did they know but the training match they will exhibit today will be the first proof of just how effective The Vikings was and how will they fit in the current war with Honkai and Anti-Entropy.


	2. Valkyries against Vikings

_Yeah, first of all I'd like to say that I'm a new guy on writing business and I am not a native english speaker so please forgive me for any errors I made in past, present and future. I would like to thank you guys for reviewing, favorite and following this story, I want you guys to know that it really become my motivation to further continue working on this story. I'd like to give my special thanks for **DDXIII** and **The crack shipping guy** for their advice regarding the issue with this story, I'll do my best to improve in the future. I can't promise a regular update but I will let everyone know when it's going to be super late (More than a month), that's all I want to say for now, here's the continuation from the last chapter...Oh and, as much as wished for... **I do not own Honkai Impact 3**._

* * *

"The rules for this mock battle are quite simple. The fighting mode is what we called, Assault. It consisted of two teams divided by their corresponding objectives…Assaulter, they are required to attack the assigned targets and its they key to victory. Defenders, they must defend the targets at any cost. They must do it until scenario specific instruction declare them winning the scenario by completing the required objectives…Each team win by default if the opposing forces suffer total defeat or concede the match. Each individual is considered out of the fight when they are unconscious, they will remain as such until the match ends. Weapons are permitted but non-lethal ammunition is a must or low yield setting in case for energy weapons, melee weapons must be non-lethal or set to stun mode for the energy one and under any circumstances, you are not to perform any attacks that might cripple your opponent's permanently! Any violation to the rules will be punished accordingly…Leaving the area will automatically label you as deserter and you will not be permitted to continue the fight. Are there any questions!?" Theresa asked the crowd.

The said crowd was the first-year students that currently lined up in the assembly field separated by gender and each leader standing up front, Theresa and Himeko decided to brief the students themselves while waiting for Siegfried and Cecilia to show up at the academy. The Valkyries were already in their training battle suit, skintight suit with large color varieties that possessed excellent flexibility, decent defenses and quite comfortable to wear.

That was what The Valkyries used during their training, the suit proven to be quite effective for The Valkyries to harness Honkai energy and turned The Valkyries into a superhuman. The Vikings were also already in their menacing black Sleipnir Armor with glaring wide V shaped blue visor.

Most of the Valkyries present eyed the Vikings like they already cheated their way for the fight, they did for a good reason though according to the girls (In their defense). The armor plating looked durable, with jet thrusters enhancing their mobility and tons of unknown features that the Valkyries sure didn't know yet.

Each of The Vikings held their firearms in hand, with sidearms on their thigh armor plating and training longsword sheathed on their hips. The firearms varied between each of them but most wield assault rifles with some carried sniper rifles and shotguns as their primary weapons. Only Ryan who were standing in front of them carrying nothing but his M1911H Pistol and a training longsword on a sheath in his right hip.

Kiana Kaslana, a girl with twin braided white hair eyed The Viking's gear with her blue eyes and she's sure that she will be in for a hard fight, handling one of them would probably easy but Vikings fight in groups or partners and separating them individually was almost impossible. It could be done but it was hard.

Kiana unsheathed her handguns from her holsters, she looked at her two USP .45 ACP handgun as she inspected the weapon on her hands. These pistols are her primary means in combat against them and right now, she was quite pessimistic regarding her weapon effectivity against that hardened armor plating.

"Miss, is there a time limit?"

The one who asked Theresa is Mei Raiden, the daughter of the infamous ME Corporation Ryouma Raiden. The black purplish long-haired girl with violet eyes wanted to know whether there is a time limit in this match because that will decide their strategy in use too, Mei did hope that if there was a limit at least it will be for an hour at least.

Left hand gripping at her training energy katana tightly, she anxiously threw a glance toward Ryan who hadn't moved a bit since the briefing started. She will heed Fuuka's warning regarding him, he's good with guns and the only way to effectively neutralize him was by close quarter combat.

"The scenario is the defending team is on the run and require immediate extraction from the battlefield. One and half hour is the limit of this fight. Pass that limits, the defender team automatically lose!" Theresa said to the students.

"If there are no further questions, you have five minutes to ready yourself! The Valkyries will board the dropship to the battlefield first, they have ten minutes head start to head for the compound! Once the Valkyries landed, The Vikings goes next!" Himeko said.

The group of girls and boys then turned sideways and faced each other, Ryan and Fuuka head in front of the group as they faced each other. Fuuka saw nothing behind Ryan's polarized visor, his body language betrays nothing as there are no unnecessary movement made. Ryan saw that Fuuka is determined to win this for some reason, her light blue eyes shown her fighting spirit.

Ryan activated his HUD and the screen immediately littered with multiple indicators, icons and gauges. The light blue HUD detected Fuuka as her profile box appeared in front of Ryan's eyes, he then selected the button on profile box with word 'Prioritize' on it.

"You and the girls ready?" Ryan asked Fuuka.

"We are, you and your boys?" Fuuka asked Ryan back.

"You'll find them more than ready, Fuuka-san. Let's have a good match!" Ryan said.

"Let's…Ryan-kun, show us what you and your Vikings got!" Fuuka said.

Ryan offered his left hand and Fuuka took it as they shook hands, witnessed by The Valkyries and The Vikings. Ryan noticed that Fuuka was sweating a bit due to the heat, he swiped the sweat on her brow with his armored glove. Just as before, the act surprised Fuuka, every Valkyries and every Vikings who witnessed it.

Some even begin to speculate that maybe the leader of The Vikings held some kind of romantic feelings toward the first-year representative. Well that's what the bystander saw and think, the real story though…

"You're already sweating milady, nervous?" Ryan said smugly.

"…Please don't touch me so casually" Fuuka warned Ryan.

"I overstep my boundaries, my apologies" Ryan said to Fuuka.

Few of the Valkyries such as Fuuka herself, Mei, Kallen and Sakura found that how Ryan act was strange. Ryan rarely talked with Fuuka outside business conduct, so it's hard to believe what he did was due to romantic feelings. But they could save the thought for later, they have to focus on the fight that will happen. The Valkyries and The Vikings saluted at each other before the girls' head to their designated dropship.

The dropship was a large Vertical Take Off Landing Craft, the plane was equipped with four main engines with two engines on its back side and one on each sides of the large wings. The dropship had three entrance with the main entrance through a hatch in the rear and two hatches on the sides, the large dropship had enough capacity to carry over fifty people and loaded two armored vehicles on its cargo compartment.

Designation for the dropship was Albatross, heavy dropship that could withstand quite harsh punishment. Armed with side machine guns for self-defense, two machine guns in the rear compartment and one heavy machine gun underneath the cockpit that could directly controlled by the pilot, the dropship was capable for self-protection and limited fire support.

Kiana and Mei went toward Fuuka's side who walked toward the dropship with even more fervor than before, Kiana taped Fuuka's shoulder and she turned her head to saw Kiana who were looking at her with complicated expression.

"Why would he do just that thing as he likes it? Don't you hate it? That can be categorized for harassment…Seriously, I never thought that he's that touchy feeling guy!" Kiana said to Fuuka.

"It doesn't really bother me, Kiana. But it felt unsettling" Fuuka said.

"Eh, really?!" Kiana asked with shock as side dish.

"Still, Ryan-kun is acting strange Fuuka-san…I never saw him being that touchy with a girl before...Why did that to you today?" Mei asked Fuuka.

"…I don't know either, Mei-san. But Ryan is not dumb, don't let your guard down for one bit. He's planning something" Fuuka said to Mei.

"Understood…Kiana-chan, Bronya-chan, let's talk about that tactic we talk yesterday. This will be our chance to test whether it could be implemented or not" Mei said to Kiana and Bronya.

"Yes, Mei" "Got it, Mei-senpai!" Kiana and Bronya answered.

Kallen and Sakura approached the four of them with Kallen carrying several Electro Pulse 40mm grenades and distributed it to Fuuka, Kiana, Mei and Bronya. Mei who mainly fought with her katana also carried a single barreled grenade launcher on her thigh strap, in fact all The Valkyries on board each possessed one. It was vital to their strategy in facing off against the boys, they will show them that the girls are not to be taken lightly.

"Grenades are distributed, Fuuka-san" Sakura said.

"Excellent. Kiana, Kallen, I'll be relying on you two to spearhead the operation. Get the boys confused and Mei alongside Sakura will swoop in to take care the ones still standing…Bronya, I want you to act as their support. The five of you is our big guns, the rest will act when the timing is right" Fuuka said.

"""""Got it!""""" Kiana, Kallen, Mei, Bronya and Sakura answered.

"Momose, Charlotte. Both of you are the only snipers the first year Valkyrie has, get to your designated position and take the prize out when he's in range" Fuuka further instructed The Valkyries.

""Understood!"" Momose and Charlotte said.

"Alright…The cards are stacked, lets see if this hasty preparation payed off!" Fuuka said.

With one last look at The Vikings, the dropship carrying Valkyries left for the battlefield that leaves Ryan and his men by themselves in the field with their dropship still parked nearby. The waiting period would be over in ten minutes, then its go time for The Vikings. Gin and Han approached Ryan who were currently chuckling for some reason, the rest of The Vikings did one last inspection and last-minute preparations for their gears. Some Vikings headed inside the school armory one more time only to returned with large bags or some kind of metallic casing on their backs.

"So…Any reason why you're chuckling by yourself?" Gin asked Ryan with curious gaze.

"Ah…Fuuka fell for it but doesn't at the same time, but still according to plan!" Ryan said.

"…What are you talking about? Did you mean when you caress her brow?" Gin asked Ryan.

"Yeah, that one. Gin, get us mini sensor drones, I want them with us. Get at least ten from the armory and have Michael operates it…Also, get me the thing I requested before" Ryan instructed Gin.

"Will do, commander" Gin just shrugged as he left.

While Gin head back to the school armory, Han then finally realized what Ryan just did. The simple act of caressing Fuuka's brow with his armored glove wasn't just for show, Viking glove thumb parts were equipped with a sensor to detect substance's property for easy identifying. It was quite a handy feature and Ryan just did it by taking Fuuka's sweat substance sample, he then requested for mini sensor drones to be brought with them for this fight…Ryan actually thought to counter Fuuka personally. Han always knew that Ryan were smarter than he let on to the public, this was the prove of it.

"…You sleazy prick!" Han said to Ryan.

"Whoa, that insult was quite sudden!" Ryan commented.

"Now I know why you were being so touchy with Fuuka before they took off!" Han said to Ryan.

"You weren't my strategy advisor for nothing, Han…The acquired DNA sample need to be programed into the drone's sensor, this will give us one hundred fifty meters radius each drone to act as surveillance for Fuuka's whereabouts. It will serve as early warning when we commence operation" Ryan said while smirking.

"Ohoho, you're a dangerous man, boss! Can't imagine what will you plan if you got entire Schicksal Air Armada with you!" Han said as he bumped his fist with Ryan's right shoulder.

"Ha! We'll see if the day comes when I become big brass and there still an enemy gunning for me!" Ryan answered as he walks to the armory.

"Ja…Let's hope when the day comes, this era Honkai fight has ended. Can't imagine what will you do" Han muttered to himself.

While Han coordinated with Michael regarding the use of the drones, Gin approached Ryan on armory entrance and thrown him something. Ryan caught the item mid-air and it was what he instructed Gin to get after the Valkyries take off, it's a small vial with bright yellow liquid on it. Ryan put on the vial on the slot in the armored torso.

He exited the armory then looked back toward the school grounds and found that The Vikings were done with their preparations, but all of them suddenly fall into formation and stand straight with head held high. Ryan, Gin and Han rose their eyebrows until they saw a young woman with short blue hair, green eyes, wearing blue colored academy instructor uniform and she stand in front of The Vikings. The said woman named Victoria Watson, a Major from United Nations Special Operation Division. She had been requested by Schicksal as instructor for Schicksal Far Eastern Branch only Viking Unit, the unit that was commanded by Ryan.

She appeared lenient and soft when she teaches them and in daily activity but she became a spartan when she instructed the Viking in training or when she was in combat, she didn't even look like someone in the military that The Vikings made a huge mistake by underestimating her on the first day of school. That resulted in damaged training hall door, broken furniture, several broken windows, shocked female students and thirty injured Viking recruits sprawled all over the area. Ryan, who was the longest recruit to survived against her couldn't even last for twenty seconds in hand-to-hand combat against Victoria.

The three Vikings walked toward the formation and fell in line except Ryan, who went straight in front of Victoria. Ryan saluted her and the rest of The Vikings follow suit, Victoria reply by giving them standard military salute and The Vikings fell at ease position.

"…Commander Ryan, you could at least give me a heads up regarding this match! I have to fly straight from a meeting in Tokyo just to attend this simulated combat that you, Major Murata and Principal Kaslana agreed to without me knowing!" Victoria said to Ryan.

"My apologies, ma'am. It was on the spot decision making" Ryan answer her.

"No matter, you made the correct call. I was also quite wondering how will you guys fare against fighting some superhumans who able to use Honkai Energy, this will be a tough challenge for you guys who struggles to defeat a Honkai beast" Victoria said while smirking.

"You forgot to mention that it was a Chariot Class and an Emperor Class we were trying to defeat during the training before, ma'am" Han said to Victoria.

"Yes, I noticed that Han. Even the Valkyries still having some difficulties in defeating them but, that's because they are still trainee…They are the same as you all currently but that won't last forever, the reason I push you beyond limits, even brutalize you in some occasion is to accelerate your growth rate. It's been two weeks since all of you enroll to this academy, I want to see how good you have become in a fight!"

Victoria doubted that The Vikings would survive the match intact, she already saw what The Valkyries could do during their training. All of the girls, they could lift tremendously heavy weapon off the ground, slashed a large Honkai Beast and they don't even break a sweat. What could possibly thirty males with the help of powered exoskeleton armor could do against them?

That's what she wanted to find out from this match, she wanted to see how The Vikings would take on opponents that were literally stronger, more experienced and more numerous than them. Outnumbered and outgunned, will The Vikings get outmatched easily or did their handsome leader standing in front of Victoria already came up with a plan? Knowing him, he might already possess one or two plans to fight the girls.

"Ma'am, I won't accept the challenge if I thought the Vikings aren't ready yet…They may didn't seem like it, but they do well with humanoid opponents. Our objective is to win this fight, am I correct?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Right you are, Ryan" Victoria answered Ryan.

"Then we're planning to win this with everything we got, even when we have to go down and dirty. The limitation is clear in this fight, let's exploit the gap in the limitation!" Ryan said to Victoria.

"…This fight, is a simulated battle against two forces that fight quite differently from each other. It will also be a battle of strategy between you and Fuuka, you realize that?" Victoria asked Ryan.

"Yes ma'am, fully" Ryan said while nodding his head.

Then this was it, Victoria had to trusted her own students and hoped that two weeks of intense training experience could produce results. The woman knew The Vikings would need a morale boost, more so than their leader could gave despite his confident words and acts. That's her job this time, she was their teacher and instructor after all.

"Then I wish you the best of luck, she weren't our first year best for nothing…All of you are my students! Each and every single one of you! The very first time we met, my very first lesson that I taught you is to never underestimate a woman! All of your opponents are women in this fight, do not underestimate them, ever! I want you all to head in there with everything you got!" Victoria said to The Vikings.

Each Vikings reminded the very first day they met with Victoria and it embedded in their minds to never underestimate a woman ever again, they learned their lessons the hard way. They were trained by the very same woman that beat their ass each time on training lessons, on everything they did. But all of them understands, that Victoria did all of this because she cared about their wellbeing. She was hard on them so they could survive the real thing when they graduated from school, she wanted each of them to continue living to fight for another day.

"Treat this fight as a real thing! Imagine that you only got one life in this fight and if you are taken down, you are dead! If you are taken down against the Valkyries who are still in training, you wouldn't even last a minute in the real fights against a real enemy! Who doesn't even hesitate to kill you on the spot then use your hands as maracas! So, get out there and make me proud that I got the privilege to train the first generation of Vikings! Do you get me?!" Victoria asked them loudly.

""""""""""Yes ma'am!"""""""""" The Vikings answered and saluted her.

"You said all of you got penis! Speak up! DO YOU GET ME, VIKINGS?!" Victoria asked them even louder.

""""""""""YES MA'AM!"""""""""" The Vikings answered her louder and saluted her.

"Good! Now board your dropship, pronto!" Victoria ordered The Vikings to move.

The Vikings on the line quickly head to the dropship except Ryan who were given hand sign by Victoria to stay. Ryan raised his eyebrows but he decided to stay for a bit to hear what Victoria has to say to him, both of them watched The Vikings board the other Albatross Dropship when Victoria decided to speak.

"You remind me of my husband a lot" Victoria said to Ryan.

"Does that include the arm?" Ryan asked with hint of amusement in his voice.

"Oh yes, you are. Though, he lost his left one" Victoria responded with grin on her face.

"How is he currently? Healthy?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Yeah, he's content working from home now and taking care of our baby girl in my absence, she's the cutest thing I've ever laid my eyes on…Silky black hair, soft green eyes, cute face…HOMU doesn't even compare to her! Ah, the very thought alone makes me want to ditch this training and head home immediately!" Victoria said as she daydreamed.

Victoria's daughter was born three months ago and she was heavily reluctant in leaving her baby girl all alone with her husband, Victoria was family-oriented woman that's why. Multiple times had she thoughted to quit the military to be a housewife but ultimately, she's just too good for the UNAF to let her go that easily.

And that's how she wound up on Saint Freya Academy, teaching the first generation of Vikings. She was skeptical regarding bunch of teenagers she's going to transform into soldiers, most of them never even held a gun before. But the rest of them? They were survivors and warriors, that was proven when she first tested them on the first day of their orientation.

"Hehehehe, yeah, you're a doting mother alright. Can I visit them someday?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Sure, you should drop by when you're free. My house is near the academy anyway, just give me a heads up" Victoria nodded her head.

"Will do…So, what do you want to relay by telling me I look a lot like your husband?" Ryan asked Victoria curiously.

"Nothing, your features and the way you act sometimes, I'm almost wondering if you were secretly his brother or something" Victoria said.

"Huh, I'm the only kid my family has, there's no way that would happen" Ryan huffed and answered.

Ryan was sure that he's the only child his parent ever had, he would have found out if he had a brother or something. The husband of Victoria Watson was a United Nations Air Force combat pilot, definitely a skilled veteran. Around five months ago during a brief skirmish against Anti-Entropy patrols, he got swarmed by their fighters and was shot down. He survived, but his left arm had to be removed because of infection.

Funny story on how they met that Ryan got the privilege to know of, the two of them were sulking on the same bar after being dumped by their former lovers. Both met, get to know and befriended each other. Because they clicked so well, it was only matter of time until both of them started to fall head over heels for each other. They got married last year, military style wedding.

Ryan only met him once, when he came to Saint Freya Academy to deliver her wife forgotten lunch box. The man had medium build, medium length spiky black hair and steel grey eyes. The guy was the nice and eccentric type, he was the type that could get along with just anybody.

"Figures…I only known you for two weeks but what I saw from you…You're dripping with potential" Victoria said to Ryan with smile on her face.

"Is that the same thing you told to Principal Theresa?" Ryan asked with eyebrows cocked.

"Yeah and unsurprisingly, she agrees with me…Given enough time and right training, you'll be the edge that Schicksal needs" Victoria shrugged.

"…Perhaps, but the future still uncertain" Ryan said uncommittedly.

"Then step forward, one step at a time. You'll find your way and place in this world, sooner or later…I took enough time from you already, I suggest you board the dropship" Victoria said while smiling.

Victoria bumped Ryan's right shoulder pad with her left fist, it produced clanking sounds and Ryan turned to looked at Victoria. The twenty-four years old woman could be seen smiled sincerely at him, Ryan's lips broke into smile as well but his helmet hid it from the world to see. He only nodded his head as a sign of affirmation toward Victoria, then he looked again toward the dropship.

"…You just want to make small talk with me huh?" Ryan commented the situation.

"Yeah…Like a little brother that I never have, I got that feeling when I speak with you" Victoria said to Ryan.

"…I'm honored…Thanks for the encouragement, Victoria" Ryan said with smile hidden beneath his helmet.

"Anytime, now go get those girl's ass!" Victoria said then winked her left eye.

"…You know…That sounds lewd when you think about it!" Ryan replied as he moved to the dropship.

Ryan board the dropship alongside The Vikings who were waiting for him, Victoria saluted at them and the dropship hatch closed itself as it made its way to the training field. Victoria then heard footsteps behind her and saw Himeko approached her, Himeko thrown her a flask filled with sake and Victoria caught it then drink from it.

"Ah! This is some good stuff!" Victoria said to Himeko.

"You bet! Anyway, I came here to tell you that Siegfried-san and Cecilia-san are already here. We're waiting for you in the control room" Himeko said to Victoria.

"I see…I had to squeeze some kind of encouragement to my students for this, most of them are practically inexperienced bunch of kids that will face a group of Valkyries" Victoria said as she smiled somberly.

Both of them begin walking toward the school building, with Victoria trailed slightly behind Himeko as she led the way to the control room. Victoria then started contemplating about lot of things during her journey to the control room, one of them being Sleipnir Armor itself. This advanced technological armor shouldn't be in the hands of thirty teenagers, they were dangerous piece of technology.

What was Schicksal aim by giving this armor to them? Victoria knew that Schicksal had another thing in mind when they started this project, but the cover for now that The Vikings were going to be supporter for Valkyries. That support could be in the form of reinforcement or taking on human enemies for them while The Valkyries focused themselves on fighting Honkai beast.

"…So, thirty state of the art armor. Thirty former teenager civilians. What does Schicksal try to achieve with this? If you're asking me, special operation soldiers would fit in more if you want to test the armor…They'll be able to use it better too" Victoria said to Himeko.

"You're asking the wrong girl, Watson-san. I have no idea what the overseer himself thinking when he approves of this project" Himeko answered without looking back to Victoria.

"You and me both" Victoria said before they reached their destination.

Meanwhile, The Valkyries were already touched down in their landing zone in the plains. Forty of them, immediately made their way to the compound in the middle of the area without wasting time as they sprinted or hovered their way to their destination. Two minutes later, they reached the compound which in the form of abandoned factory. Since most of the facility were underground, the top area was quite small as it only consisted by several buildings, a relay dish, a generator, a control tower and few container stacks. Bronya summoned her Project Bunny 19, a mech that she created and use the mech to performed a scan around the factory.

The result was quite good, they found several stacks of supply and few defense turrets along the wall were still operational. Bronya marked the spots in the tactical map that was accessed by every Valkyries in the area, when Fuuka saw this she immediately racked up a plan of defense. Without a doubt, the factory was the prime target but she still didn't know how Ryan will make his attack. Fuuka then decided to put on 'Safety approach' for the defense of the compound.

"Everyone, we go with Plan B. Seven minutes left to prepare our defense and ambushes, move it!" Fuuka ordered.

Kallen and Kiana immediately took off from the compound together without single words wasted, Bronya immediately went for the tallest spot in the area which was a control tower that give her 360 degrees view around the area. Mei nodded toward Sakura as the both of them and several Valkyries took off into different direction from each other, both groups then further dispersed to maximized their range of supervision and minimized their signatures.

"So, Kiana, how are we going to dealt the blow to the boys?" Kallen decided to ask Kiana.

"Do you need to ask? We do this with Kaslana style!" Kiana said.

"That means filling them with lead until they give in!" Kallen said with hint of amusement in her voice.

"Oh well, it's always works! Dad is the living example and the reason why he can't do anything against mother" Kiana said with a hint of fear in her voice.

"Fufufufu, fighting Aunty Cecilia is a suicidal move either way…Okay, here's our spot!" Kallen said.

"Roger! I'll leave the rest to you, Kallen! I'll be standing by on the other side!" Kiana took off immediately.

"Just don't go charging alone if they did show up, okay Kiana!?" Kallen asked Kiana.

"Yes, yes, Kallen. I got it" Kiana answered reluctantly.

Mei alongside several Valkyries approached the edge of the forest in the southern part, she held her fist high and The Valkyries following her stopped their advances. Mei scanned the area for any suitable hold out position and found this edge of the forest was a high ground, giving them view to southern area quite well.

"Alright, anyone with ranged weapons I want you to hold here. Keep your eyes on the area ahead…The rest of you, we'll stand by on top of the trees. We'll move in once they are within strike range" Mei instructed them.

Sakura alongside several other Valkyries reached the eastern edge of the forest, when they arrived, they immediately faced with dense forest with trees packed near each other. Sakura looked around and she saw several bushes around the area, she looked back at the Valkyries and saw that one of them has a Cross Shaped machine gun on her back sheathe.

"Naomi-san, how long that Cross able to fire continuously?" Sakura asked Naomi.

"I'd say, twenty seconds continuous fire until reload" Naomi said to Sakura.

"Perfect, is it remote controlled?" Sakura asked Naomi again.

"Why yes" Naomi said.

"Then please place that machine gun on that bush over there. The rest of us will set up position above the trees, it's our best shot" Sakura instructed them.

Bronya sat above Project Bunny 19's shoulder as she busied herself touching and dragging icons on holographic scenes in front of her, that was until a screen pop out in front of her. The screen had a large circle on it alongside compass on its edge and a yellow blimp were approaching from the northern area of the map, Bronya set her Project Bunny 19 weapon system online in anticipation.

Meanwhile, Fuuka was inside the control tower of the compound alongside several Valkyries. They immediately booted the generator up and perform system check-up, one of The Valkyries that operated the tower's terminal stumbled upon something. She was currently checking through anything still operational when she found out that the compound has defense turrets.

"Fuuka-san, there are defense turrets in the compound's wall. They are operational with non-lethal ammunition loaded, this is convenient!" The Valkyrie said.

"What kind?" Fuuka asked her.

"Heavy Machine Gun Type and several Flak Cannons and…Oh my, three mortars!" The said Valkyrie exclaimed.

"…Those turrets would do nicely. Have them activated and run continuous search 360 degrees of the compound…The boys are in for a surprise" Fuuka said while smiling a bit.

Two kilometers away from the compound, an Albatross Dropship was holding position by hovering on air. Ryan and Han were on the cockpit alongside its two pilot, overseeing the entire battlefield. Making sure the dropship was stable, Ryan tapped one of the pilot's shoulder.

"Hold it steady guys!" Ryan said to the pilot.

"Yeah, yeah. Just get your business done already, we have to return to the air pad within ten minutes for maintenance!" One of the pilots said.

"Got it, please bear with us until then!" Ryan said.

Exiting the cockpit, Ryan and Han got the view of the Vikings seated in the troop compartment. Few of them with their smartphone in their hands, few inspected their guns, few talked to each other and the rest just silently waiting for the go order. Ryan and Han opened the dropship side hatches and stuck their heads out. For anyone who were currently wondering on why did those two did that, its because their helmets were also equipped with built in binocular. They didn't need an analog one to zoom in as far as five kilometers from their position, their helmet was good enough for that. Both took each side as they surveyed the whole battlefield.

"What did you find?" Ryan asked Han.

"Other than the fact the compound is ridiculously overpowered for an abandoned factory and completely online with turrets ready to hound our ass? I see there are only half of The Valkyries stationed in the compound, Bronya is on top of the control tower with her mech…Fuuka and several of them is inside the control tower…I don't see Kiana, Kallen, Mei or Sakura anywhere. You?" Han asked back.

Ryan found this unsurprising, Fuuka indeed think that the five of them are the big guns of The Valkyries. So, she would wanted to position them strategically but the question is, where?

Kiana Kaslana may didn't do too well on the academics but this gluttonous beautiful girl was actually quite smart, albeit too lazy to do any real studying. But her main strength was her combat abilities as she rarely missed with her handguns, strong in hand to hand combat and quite elusive.

Mei Raiden was smart, beautiful, amazing cook, definitely wife material and what makes her a cut above your usual girl? She was a master swordswoman, she was more than proficient with her katana. Ryan knew he should watch out for this girl, he isn't exactly 'fit' to engaged her in close quarter.

Bronya Zaychik was even smarter, this baby faced cute loli genius was what the boys dubbed as 'cute little wolf' for despite her looks, she was quite ferocious in battle. Her self-made Project Bunny Mech were her main weapon and heck, the boys wished that they never have to fight it…Well, tough luck boys…Fate could be a dick sometimes.

Sakura Yae wasn't your average beautiful country girl for she was a former Miko and a master swordswoman, there are lot of talks regarding who were the best between her and Mei. Another person Ryan had to watch out for, Sakura somehow present larger threat to him than Mei did.

Kallen Kaslana, cousin of Kiana Kaslana. The girl was even deadlier than Kiana for she was extremely flexible in a fight, both her marksmanship and her close quarter combat abilities were a clear threat. This girl doesn't seem to possess any weakness that Ryan could exploit too…Damnit.

Ryan soon found where Sakura stationed herself, alongside streak of white hairs between the trees. Looks like the big guns except Bronya were outside the compound, Fuuka thinks that they will deploy on the ground and fight a battle of attrition while heading into the compound…Ryan found that to be a waste of time, energy and ammo.

"Same as you but I spot some movement in the forest to the east. Pink and white hairs are spotted" Ryan said to Han.

"Huh, she thought we'll drop in straight to the forest and make our way from there?" Han asked Ryan.

"Probably, but that's not all…This is Zero One, it's almost time. Open the map guys" Ryan said on the radio.

All of The Vikings dropped whatever they were doing and opened the map in their HUD, one by one a red arrow marks fill the map as Ryan and Han marked each anomaly they saw in the field. From some unclear movements to the obvious Valkyries that weren't aware they were being stalked from the sky standing by on top of the trees. After marking all of them, Ryan and Han faced the waiting Vikings.

"Right…Theresa never specify how are we going to deploy isn't she?" Ryan asked Han.

"As far as I remember? No" Han said.

"She also never specifies what kind of weaponry we use, except for the ammo or energy output part?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Yeah, she only specifies the ammo and energy output part…Not the weapons" Gin said.

The perfect loophole that The Vikings could exploit during the fight, this for certain had to be done because there was no way they were going to win this fighting them in prolonged battle. They will need to strategize in their movements and they have to hit them fast, otherwise they will suffer defeat when they begin their assault.

"Vikings, it turns out we have to use our last resort from the start! I realized that doing this may not look like an honorable approach but heck, we are not medieval knight's with chivalry sense of honor! We are Vikings and we'll make sure to fight as savagely as they did in the past! We will commence Plan Charon, timing is everything! Get ready!" Ryan said to The Vikings.

All Vikings loaded and cocked their weapons, some of them took off the huge casing they are carrying and it transformed into several Gatling Compact Gun Model 7 and Brune Recoilless Rocket Launcher. This was what The Vikings prepared in the last minute, they just had to make sure that the girls left first after seeing them with only basic infantry weapons. Deceiving your opponents was the first step to victory.

"Pilot, bring us to above the compound fifty meters above the ground! Please circle it until I give you further instruction!" Ryan instructed the pilots.

"What!? That isn't on our to-do list today!" One of the pilots protested at Ryan.

"You just receive one! Just please do it! We need your cooperation!" Ryan asked the pilot.

"…Oh fine! If we got in trouble, it's your ass kid!" The pilot said.

"Michael, release the drones around the compound! Set it as early warning and targeting platform!" Ryan said to Michael.

"Sir yes sir!" Michael responded.

The Vikings named Michael then opened the rear hatch of the dropship, he dropped the bag he's carrying and opened it, revealing quite number of adult human fist sized round drones. Michael then took out a tablet and the drones started levitating, the drones then exited the dropship and headed toward the compound.

"We found her too easily, but getting a lock on her is easier this way" Ryan said.

"…So, you did that all that romantic act for nothing since we knew her position before the battle begins huh?" Han asked Ryan while grinning.

"Sadly, yes. Damnit, now most Valkyries would be wary of me" Ryan said in somber tone.

"…In contrary, most of them will try to gain your attention…" Han mumbled his thought.

"You said something Han?" Ryan asked Han for confirmation.

"Just mumbling about the fact you're in for a hard time!" Han said while grinning under his helmet.

"Thanks for reminding me you bastard!" Ryan stared at Han with unamused eyes.

Since the drone was small and it has stealth capabilities against radar, Bronya's mech didn't picked up anything other than the approaching dropship. She still set Project Bunny's laser cannon aimed toward the radar contact, she had a prediction that The Vikings just thrown stealth out of the window with their supposed dropship approaching the compound with increased speed.

"We're heading straight for the hot zone, boss?!" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Yeah! Just like British special forces motto, 'He who dare wins!'" Ryan said to Rahn.

"Bold suicidal move, lucky me!" Rahn said sarcastically.

"Phase Shifter check!" Gin instructed to The Vikings.

Every Vikings inside the dropship ran diagnostic check to their Phase Shifter, the equipment was proven to be working normally. Phase Shifter was an advanced technology mirror which functioned as storage device for practically anything, think of it as a backpack but with vast amount of storage capacity despite for being an object as big as an adult human hand.

Phase Shifter was widely used by military forces and rarely seen in civilian sector, this technology was so convenient that you could basically store an entire car inside it. This piece of technology was the reason why Bronya could summon her Project Bunny 19 Mech at will, it's also the reason why The Valkyries and Vikings able to stored their things and summoned them instantly.

Despite the convenient use of Phase Shifter, it still possessed several limitations. First, each Phase Shifter has its own specification with how many, how big or how heavy the things it could convert and stored inside. Second, summoning the items from it instantly required some degree of mental training. Third and the gravest one, if Phase Shifter was damaged then the things inside may as well become unusable or become twisted in some way if forced summoned to the real world.

That was why during training, everyone was encouraged to NOT put anything vital inside Phase Shifter. The reason why Vikings and Valkyries often had their weapons on their bodies instead stored on Phase Shifter was this, they will be defenseless if the equipment broke. That being said, some of them who possessed huge weaponry often employed this method despite strongly encouraged not to.

Phase Shifter information storage were viewable from a terminal or installed application, from there the user could also managed the summoning and storing items. In Viking case, it was implemented on their armor so it become much easier for them to summon things at moment notice. Because the implementation of neural signal reading on the armor, Vikings only need to 'think' and Phase Shifter will work. The Valkyries also possess similar abilities because of the neural implant chip they installed on their head…Yeah, convenient technology alright.

"Heavy weapons! Up!" Ryan shouted to the Vikings.

With Ryan's command and hand gesture, The Vikings that carried Gatling Gun and Rocket Launcher proceed to exit the dropship to used their jet thruster. They got on top of the dropship, pointed their weapons to the port side of the aircraft and latched themselves with the magnetic pull of their shoes to the aircraft hull, the pilot immediately understood on what Ryan trying to do.

"Vanguards! The turrets and other defenses are your responsibility! Assault Team! Drop in and head straight for the generator after the turrets gone offline! The rest of you including me, damage control! We'll take on the girls directly when the time hits!" Ryan instructed The Vikings.

""""""""""Sir yes sir!""""""""""

The rest of The Vikings set themselves with their jet thrusters on standby while facing the rear hatch of the dropship, Ryan nodded at Han who after seeing the compound within five hundred meters range to the front, tapped into the dropship speaker control. He opened the playlist he had and set 'The Final Countdown' to played through the dropship speaker. Gin, Rahn, Agus, James and Igor only looked at Han with questioning gaze.

"Psychological warfare! It's always fun to blast someone while accompanied by music!" Han said to them.

"Huh, it certainly gives us cocky impression!" Agus said to Han.

"Loosen up a little my friend! And set your sniper rifle to fire on Fuuka!" Han said dismissively.

Agus only sighed as he motioned two Vikings with his hand to head toward the dropship's top side, the three of them got off the dropship, engaged their thrusters and had themselves join the team above the dropship with their Nyx Sniper Rifle. Ryan tapped Igor shoulder pad and handed him a specialized bomb to complete the mission, the bomb was categorized as Sonic Bomb.

Sonic Bomb was a non-lethal explosive, the explosion it produced were in the form of kinetic energy release that could pushed anything out of the way in fifty-meter radius. It may seem ineffective against hard targets such as Honkai Energy Generator or the relay dish but if placed in the right spot, it will become a lethal blow. And among them, Igor was the best when it comes to explosives.

"It's all on you, Igor" Ryan said to Igor.

"Da, you can count on me, comrade!" Igor said to Ryan.

Fuuka got out from the control tower when she spotted the radar indicated that the dropship carrying The Vikings was approaching the compound directly, she then noticed the drones that was hovering above the compound. After deliberating for a while, she came to a conclusion. The Vikings just thrown themselves into fire by approaching them directly like this, surely Ryan realized that.

Then why are they so confident approaching the heavily fortified defensive position? Blasting off music from the speaker too. Nevertheless, Fuuka knew that the main battlefield will be inside the compound.

"All Valkyrie interceptor teams, head back to the compound…The boys want a straight up fight!" Fuuka instructed them.

It became clear, when the dropship approached the compound closer that Fuuka cannot risk using the defensive cannon emplacement to fire on The Vikings without shooting down the large dropship. But that's why she opted out the flak cannons, the dropship was tough enough to face the brunt of heavy machine guns attacks.

"Benio-san, rain the dropship with heavy machine gun…We can't risk shooting down the aircraft!" Fuuka instructed to The Valkyrie operator.

"Understood…The boys playing dirty, they want to drop in directly into the compound!" Benio said.

"…All is fair in love and war, this is no exception" Fuuka said.

The compound was in range and The Vikings saw that the Heavy Machine Gun Turrets were aiming them, Ryan take a look from the side hatch with Han as Gin readied himself to lead the assault team. Rahn and Igor were going to deploy alongside the Vanguards. Ryan then spotted several Valkyries exiting the forest and head straight for the compound, it seems Fuuka noticed what they were trying to do and recalled The Valkyries as an effort to reinforced their defense.

Weapons from both sides aimed at each other, each of them with fingers on the trigger. All it takes, was one spark and the area would turn into hell in seconds. Bronya took aim carefully with her Project Bunny 19 laser cannon to strafed the boys on top of the dropships when she noticed something…The boys above it had heavy weapons! Something they did not carry when they are in briefing before!

"What's the order, boss?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Let all hell breaks loose! Engage!" Ryan commanded them.

"Oh, now it's on!" Gin said.

"Agus, that's your cue!" James said to Agus.

"Let the girls taste them, boys!" Agus shouted to The Vikings above the dropship.

BBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!

WHOSH!

WHOSH!

WHOSH!

WHOSH!

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

Multiple Gatling Guns, rocket launchers and sniper rifles with the help of targeting system supplemented by multiple drone's fired at every Valkyrie stationed on the compound, the sudden attack successfully taken down several Valkyries who were caught unaware of the approaching dropship. Kiana and Kallen who were making their way back to the compound looked at the dropship with shock painted their faces.

"They use their dropship to attack!? Isn't that cheating!?" Kiana asked aloud.

"…Aunt Theresa never specify that the dropship is not permitted to be used in this fight! She also didn't set any landing zone in the briefings…The boys use that loophole to fight us!" Kallen said.

"Oh great! At least we won't have trouble finding and shooting them!" Kiana said.

Sakura and Mei regrouped with each other before heading back to the compound, along the way they witnessed the dropship circled around compound raining death from above. They expected a direct fight with the boys but that wasn't on their mind, using dropship as firing platform isn't against the rules set by Theresa back on the briefing.

"…Ryan-kun opt for direct approach, he didn't hesitate to dive straight into direct fire!" Mei commented on the situation.

"Bold move and reckless, he's trying to win this match as quickly as possible, isn't he?" Sakura said.

"Most likely. We need to pick up the pace, Sakura-san!" Mei said to Sakura.

"I'm right behind you, Mei!" Sakura nodded her head.

Heavy Machine Gun Turrets started raining the dropship in retaliation, several rounds hit The Vikings directly and their bodies flashed yellow for fracture of seconds that also stopped the projectile effectively. That's right, energy shielding. The shield enveloped the entire armor and it had quite the durability, capable withstanding sustained fire from most human small arms weaponry.

If anyone think that the shield was overpowered, they obviously never fought an Emperor Class Honkai beast while wearing the shielding that prototype Sleipnir gives. It took only one hit from the beam attack to downed the shielding of the armor and by the time it launched additional beam attack, the remaining shield will be depleted and the beam would slice easily through the armor and cut The Viking operator into two parts.

Luckily, all of that fight still happened during simulated battle a week ago. If they indeed fought the real beast, most of The Vikings would become casualty list. It might capable shrugging off most of human weaponries attack but when it comes to Honkai forces, its strength was still questionable.

"Commence operation!" Ryan said to Han.

"Operation: Hell Dive is a go, repeat, Operation: Hell Dive is a go! Vanguards, you are cleared for launch!" Han said to every Vikings.

"Vanguards cleared for launch! Follow me!" Rahn shouted.

Rahn and Igor followed by Vanguards immediately exited the dropship from rear hatch, engaged their jet thruster and head straight for the turrets. Benio, the girl who was controlling the system in the control tower immediately noticed when ten Vikings exited their moving dropship and spread off toward each turret on the compound.

"Fuuka-san! The boys are trying to shut down the turrets!" Benio said.

"That's the opening move! All Valkyries near the turrets, you got incoming! Hold them off! Any sight on Ryan's lieutenants!?" Fuuka asked Benio.

"Not for now! They all look identical, it's hard to distinguish them!" Benio said.

Bronya fired her laser cannon toward the dropship upper side, she's confident that her cannon strafe even in low power output was enough to downed The Vikings energy shielding. What she didn't expect was The Vikings who were carrying the rocket launcher all get in front of the Gatling Gun carrying ones, they then put their hands forward that glowed yellow and the laser strafe completed its run without any of them taking damage.

Another feature of the armor, localized shield projector on the armor wrist guard. This shield had its own energy cell so when the main shielding was down, the shielding on the wrist were still capable to be used. Both wrist guards of The Prototype Sleipnir Armor possessed this emitter and that shield could be combined to form powerful barrier, laser cannon wouldn't even be a problem.

"Fact, Laser beam proven ineffective against Viking's shielding. Switching weapon mode into energy compression mode" Bronya said.

The Vikings above the dropship resumed firing at The Valkyries on the compound, suppressing them into taking cover and only few of them capable on counter-attacking them. Han had told Ryan that most Valkyries possessed weaponries that were only effective in short range, most of them even preferred melee weapons.

That's what made Ryan devised a plan to kept their distance and rained bullet hell upon the girls, this tactic was the opening move to shell shocked The Valkyries before moving on to the main event. The Vikings tactical savage assault. Suddenly, The Heavy Machine Gun Turrets went offline without warning followed by the other turrets started shutting down one by one.

"Turrets are offline! Aren't the boys just engaged in combat with our guards near the turrets?!" Benio asked Fuuka.

Fuuka looked at the turrets position, it's true that some of the arriving Vikings just started combat with The Valkyries guarding the turrets. Then how come they sabotaged the turrets before some of them even landed? Meanwhile on the dropship, one Viking furiously typing and dragging things around his tablet as he tried his best to take over the system controlling the turrets on the compound.

"Hey sir, this include overtime you know!?" The Viking said to Ryan.

"Yeah, yeah! You got free lunch tomorrow, Michael! Just keep it up!" Ryan said to Michael.

"Alright, all turrets offline!" Michael said.

"Han! Assault Team!" Ryan instructed Han.

"Turrets downed! Assault Team, launch now!" Han said.

"Assault Team moving in! Alright boys! It's showtime!" Gin shouted.

Five Vikings dropped straight from the dropship, used their thrusters to slowed their fall and immediately went gun blazing toward any Valkyrie on the spot. They managed to hit the girls but that wasn't enough took them down, The Valkyries immediately dived for nearby cover as Viking Assault Team moved in steadily with guns spewing electro-stun bullets from their weapons.

"They're everywhere!" A Valkyrie said on radio.

"I need help on the eastern side! I can't move at all!" A Valkyrie said on the radio.

"Urgh! That dropship is starting to piss me off!" A Valkyrie said on the radio.

"We got two of them approaching us, requesting support! Kyaaa!" A Valkyrie was cut off on the radio.

"They just send another ground team! They are heading for the generators! Send backup now! We are pinned down!" One Valkyrie said on radio.

"Send me the location, I'll move in there myself!" Fuuka said as she took off.

Kiana and Kallen jumped and landed on top of the wall surrounding the compound, they faced two Vikings who just taken down two Valkyries with burst fire from their M20SAR. Both Vikings turned their heads in surprise when they heard Kiana and Kallen landed on top of the wall, The Vikings then raised their weapons.

"…Shit just hit the fan!" One Viking said.

"Orders are orders, gun them!" The other Viking said.

Both Vikings fired their rifles, Kiana and Kallen managed to dodged the bullet hails while charging forward. Both Vikings were surprised that both Valkyries managed to dodged the weapons automatic fire in close quarter, Kallen then send a left hook toward the first Viking while Kiana throwed high kick toward the second one.

Both Vikings held their ground despite the heavy hit the two superhumans gave, the first Viking attempt to fire in point blank but he ran out of bullets as the weapon only produce clicking sounds. Kallen smirked as she unsheathed one of her Colt Anaconda Handgun and unleashed a shot in point blank directly to the gut, the attack was done at point blank that caused the shield projector failed to work.

The sheer impact of the magnum bullet combined with the unleashed high voltage electric shock managed to send The Viking in question tumbling to the ground, Kiana did the same but due to the weapon she had she fired her dual USP multiple times toward The Viking's helmet. Kiana's opponent tried to send a right hook toward her but Kiana managed to ducked out of the way.

"Too slow!" Kiana taunted him.

Kiana then slide tackled her opponent before she jammed an axe kick toward him midair in the gut, The Viking was downed on the ground with feet forcefully jammed in the gut. Kallen threw several fast jabs toward her opponent who succeeded in getting up, the last hit she send was a flying kick and The Viking was thrown off the seven meters wall then landed harshly on the ground below that produced loud clanking sound.

"Ouch, mean hits as usual Kallen!" Kiana commented.

"Thanks…Come on, we aren't done yet!" Kallen said.

"Lead the way, cousin" Kiana said.

Preparing to move toward the control tower, Kallen unleashed a shot at Kiana's opponent on the floor straight to the head and the guy passed out instantly. Meanwhile on the south eastern wall section, both Mei and Sakura alongside their fellow Valkyries managed to climb the wall, only to be greeted with three Vikings firing at them.

"They're here!" One Viking said.

"Go full auto! Don't give them room to maneuver!" The other Viking instructed.

Sakura succeed in getting close to one of them and sliced the guy in full power with her energy katana, breaking the energy shield and shocked The Viking to his core. Sakura then grabbed the stunned Viking as cover human shield as his teammates fired at him accidentally while moving forward, the bullets hit the poor guy in back multiple times as Sakura held her human shield firmly.

"B-Blue on blue!" The guy that Sakura held said.

"Crap! Sorry!" One of his teammates said.

Sakura threw the guy toward his teammates who successfully dodged him, but one of them was stabbed in the back by none other than Mei herself who flanked them when they were busy with Sakura. The other Viking unsheathed his training longsword and slashed at Mei, but of course it was blocked by her katana before she counter attacked by performing several quick slashes at The Viking.

Quick Katana slashes proven to be ineffective against Sleipnir's shielding as it only drained forty percent of the shield power, the other Viking who was thrown by Sakura recovered by rolled back and fired his M20SAR in short controlled burst at both Valkyries while crouching. Mei and Sakura went down from the wall, then both of them jumped up toward the wall directly by The Vikings flanks.

Sakura took on one Viking and Mei took another, both were engaged in intense close quarter combat. Sakura's opponent opted to use his armored limbs in the fight against her, he launched blow after blow toward Sakura who either blocked or dodged the strike. Mei and her opponent were engaged in sword fight where it seems Mei had the upper hand against her opponent, it wasn't long before Mei found an opening and used it to diagonal slashed her opponent then stabbed him right in the chest.

Done with her opponent who passed out on the floor due to the electrical shock, Mei immediately headed for Sakura's opponents in order to help Sakura in her fight. The Viking noticed Mei approach however as he suddenly pulled out his VAP sidearm, he fired several rounds at Mei who managed to dodged the bullets narrowly. Mei kept advancing however and prepared to stabbed The Viking who were caught between rock and hard place, Sakura also maneuvered to perform diagonal slash.

Just when it's about to end for the poor guy, a stray bullet struck Mei from behind that wavered her concentration and footing. The Viking kicked Mei away and used his rifle to blocked Sakura's katana strike, he then grabbed her arm but not before Sakura punched him hard in the face. He's unfazed however and about to slammed her to the floor were it not for him suddenly got blasted by a burst of electrical shock.

Mei who was still downed on the floor had a singled barreled HK40GL and just unloaded her grenade at The Viking, he got thrown into the floor unconscious due to the burst of electric shock and the kinetic force that hit his back in full force. Sakura sighed in relief, she went over to Mei and extended her right hand. Mei took Sakura's hand as she helped Mei rose from the floor.

"That was close, I was lucky to carry this grenade launcher with me" Mei said to Sakura.

"Yes, it is, thank you for the help" Sakura said while smiling.

"No problem…We need to rendezvous in the control tower, Kiana-chan and Kallen-san already on their way" Mei said while looking at the said building.

"Then let's go, I got a feeling that their main force hasn't arrived yet!" Sakura said.

Both Mei and Sakura made their way toward the control tower, Kiana and Kallen were already there who currently waiting for them. Benio, The Valkyrie in charge in the control tower came out from the room to meet with the four Valkyries. The winner of this fight was still unclear but The Viking had the advantage, The Valkyries need to do something unless they want to be defeated quickly.

"Fuuka-san got a message for the four of you" Benio said.

"What's the word, Benio?" Kallen asked her.

"She said 'We need to take down the dropship figuratively, force Ryan to fight himself and made this entire situation into ground combat'" Benio said Fuuka's message.

"So, since we can't shoot down the dropship. We have to board it" Kallen said.

"And who's going to do that?" Sakura asked Kallen.

"Me of course! Leave the dropship to me, you guys can handle The Vikings on the ground!" Kallen said to the others.

"Hey! I want to go up and beat them up too! You can't hog the big game by yourself, Kallen!" Kiana said to Kallen while pouting.

"…Just go, the two of you. We'll handle the ones on the ground, please don't waste time on fighting by yourself" Sakura said while massaging her temples.

"Yay! Sakura is so thoughtful" Kiana grinned at Sakura.

"…I'm doing it so we have less trouble to mind" Sakura muttered to herself.

"Fine then, I guess a backup couldn't hurt…Oh wait, where's Fuuka?" Kallen asked Benio.

"Yeah, aren't she supposed to stay here and coordinate the defenses?" Mei asked Benio.

"Ah, about that…" Benio said in exasperation.

Fuuka jumped off the building edge she's on, landed on a container stack and she spotted her target near the Honkai Energy Generator, five Vikings armed with M20SAR assault rifle and TSGM1 shotgun steadily made their way toward the generator while burning off their ammo toward any Valkyries that attempted to stop them.

The Viking seems to noticed her however as three of them suddenly aimed their weapon toward her, Fuuka dodged the bullet hails by jumped off the stack of containers. Fuuka gathered power on her hands before she extended it forward, launching huge ball of flames toward The Vikings. The Viking team HUD described the ball with one wording on its status box, 'Avoid!'

"Holy shit!" One Viking on the team exclaimed.

"Scatter!" Gin shouted his command.

The Vikings immediately dispersed from the spot with the aid of their jet thrusters, Fuuka landed in the spot where The Vikings used to be and immediately put on defensive stance as two Vikings headed toward her with jet thrusters blazing. The Vikings send double lariat at Fuuka, but she easily blocked the attacks with her own two hands. She smirked a bit when she kicked one of The Vikings, that send him crashing into a building wall and Fuuka hard slammed the other to the ground.

Gin approached Fuuka with his longsword drawn, he performed several quick slashes but Fuuka manage to blocked all of it with her armored gloves. Seeing he didn't succeed landing any attacks, Gin retreated temporarily as two Vikings took his place who immediately fired their M20SAR in full auto at Fuuka. The girl took cover behind a building before she appeared split seconds later, with a HK40GL on her hands. Fuuka fired the grenade launcher at the two Vikings who immediately deployed their wrist shield to protect themselves, the grenade exploded after hitting one of the shields and The Vikings took no damage.

But that was the gap Fuuka looked for because split seconds later she appeared on front of them both, needless to say both were unprepared for the close encounter with her. Spinning kick hurled toward them and both Vikings were thrown from the spot harshly, all of it while Gin watched them. He whistled in amazement at Fuuka's martial prowess then he gripped his longsword tightly, this weren't going to end well. One Viking who just recovered after being slammed to the ground by Fuuka approached Gin, he was limping though.

"The last boss appeared sir, what are we going to do?" The Viking asked Gin.

"Oh, we're going to need reinforcement to take her down" Gin said as he charged toward Fuuka.

Ryan saw what happened from the dropship could only nodded his head in confirmation, he knew this would happen when they strike the compound directly. But oh well, its all still going according to plan. But what widened his eyes was when Kallen herself flew toward the dropship from the top of control tower, after being thrown by Bronya's Project Bunny 19 and Kiana was next in line.

"Incoming!" Ryan shouted.

Kallen landed on the dropship troop compartment, the remaining Vikings on the dropship immediately aimed their guns at her but Kallen remained unfazed. Kiana followed after her with her dual USP aimed at The Vikings with cocky grin.

"Alright boys! We can end this peacefully, but it'll be boring or gun blazing, which is more fun! So, what it's going to be!?" Kiana declared while grinning.

"…Kaslana's combo huh, we're in deep shit, aren't we?" Han asked with his rifle aimed toward them.

"Yeah, we are. Han, take the rest. I'm going solo" Ryan said as he stepped forward.

"You just love the chance to kill yourself, huh mate" James said sarcastically.

"Had to admit James, this is interesting…Now go!" Ryan commanded.

The remaining Vikings including Han and James engaged their thrusters that cleared the dropship troop compartment under five seconds, now it's only Kiana, Kallen and Ryan remained on the dropship with The Vikings above the dropship who still firing their weapons to The Valkyries on the ground. Kallen noticed this then called Bronya, the opportunity to clear this dropship just showed up.

"Bronya! Dropship is clear!" Kallen said to her radio.

"Bronya understood" Bronya responded on radio.

Bronya aimed her Project Bunny Mech toward the dropship once again with one of its hand protecting her from incoming fire, the laser cannon on the other hand glowed bright blue. Agus noticed this when he saw it through his NSR scope and he got a feeling that unless they avoided it, all of them aboard the dropship were toasted. But he realized that too late though, as split second later Bronya was done with her preparation.

"Fire!" Bronya said.

The laser cannon fired at The Vikings on board the dropship upper section and all of them got hit by a concentrated blue energy ball, all of The Vikings on top fell off the dropship and landed not so smoothly on the ground below. Luckily, their shielding softens the impact for them. Unluckily, they found the rest of the Valkyries already waiting for them like hungry Vultures and charged at them with weapons drawn, oh and fury of a woman accompanied them close behind.

"…Shit" Agus said.

"Shit indeed!" One Viking responded to him.

The Vikings that engaged Fuuka increased in number as some of the surviving Vanguards joined them after The Valkyries retreated so suddenly, but this proved to be the perfect chance. Fuuka was outnumbered ten to one and she were their number one target, Ten Vikings surrounded her with weapons drawn. One of them cocked the TSGM1 shotgun he's carrying, they were ready to send her some another bullet hails. Gin and Rahn both stepped forward to face Fuuka with weapons drawn, they can't lower their guard even for a bit.

"Fuuka-san, you're outnumbered. I suggest you concede this fight before we gun you down on the spot, this is your first and last warning!" Gin said to Fuuka.

"Gin-san, is it? What makes you believe that I will surrender?" Fuuka asked Gin.

"The Vikings are on their way to win this match, we are very close to victory. You might as well surrender!" Gin said to Fuuka.

"…Most of us Valkyries have fought since we're on junior high school, we're no strangers in combat. Do you think we will surrender to some people with two weeks training experience on their belt? I don't think so…Let me show you that The Valkyries will win this fight!" Fuuka said while smirking and then set her stance.

"Doesn't look like she will surrender, Gin. Negotiations never seems to worked for us" Rahn said.

"Oh well, I see this coming anyway…Get her boys!" Gin commanded The Vikings.

Eight Vikings fired their guns on Fuuka who escaped the bullet hails, eight Vikings immediately dissolved into two man's team as they went to set search pattern on her. Fuuka managed to escaped undetected then she reloaded her HK40GL, she went out from her cover, fired her grenade, beat any grenade explosion survivors down with her fist, rinse and repeat. Before long, Fuuka appeared in front of Gin and Han unscathed but none of The Vikings pursuing her ever returned.

"Kami…they all failed" Gin said then sighed.

"Well Gin, they always said that if you want to do something right, do it yourself" Rahn said with rifle in hand.

"Huh…Fine, we'll take you on directly Fuuka-san!" Gin said as he made a stance with his sword.

"Come and get me then! Show me that you Vikings were truly a worthy foe!" Fuuka declared while smiling a bit.

Meanwhile on the dropship, Ryan took out his M1911H and set the safety off. Seeing the two Kaslana ladies on front of him, Ryan got two choices. Either escaped the dropship or get gunned down by the two ladies without resisting. Both Kiana and Kallen wasted no more time as both fired their guns at Ryan, but the bullets were stopped as Ryan extended his left hand and had the auxiliary wrist shield activated.

"Hey kid! We have to return to the air pad, I suggest you and your friends get off right now!" One of the pilots said.

"Got it, thanks for the help guys!" Ryan said.

"…Get off?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"Yeah, time's out for us. We have to get down eventually…So, let's continue our dance on the ground, ladies!" Ryan said.

Ryan fired his hand cannon in quick succession at both Kiana and Kallen who both had to dodged the bullets, they recovered quickly only to found that Ryan already exited the dropship. Free falling from the sky, Ryan immediately activated his thrusters and he landed smoothly on the ground. He smirked as he looked forward and found several of his men were downed on the ground, unmoving.

His eyes widened but the surprise doesn't end there however as Bronya fired her laser beam straight into his face, Ryan was thrown five meters back and recover by performing midair flip. He looked at his shield meter, it was flashing red with alarm ringing that tells him about his shield which only has ten percent shield power remaining, the laser beam was quite dangerous and Ryan told himself to avoid the next one.

"Holy…shit" Ryan muttered to himself.

Kallen and Kiana successfully dropped from the dropship and had their guns pointed at Ryan, so were the twenty other Valkyries that surrounded his landing site. Fuuka landed in front of him followed by Bronya, Mei and Sakura while Kiana and Kallen joined them shortly after that. Ryan couldn't help it but to be drenched in cold sweat, this was unexpected. Does this mean twenty-nine Vikings all got beaten up by The Valkyries?

So much success on the first part of the plan and in the end, everything went wrong in every possible place. Ryan couldn't believe his luck sometimes, he bet his entire unit that they were ready to face off against the girls but he guessed that its definitely impossible to pull off victory against Valkyries who most of them had combat experience since junior high.

To sum up this current situation, Ryan believed he's already done for in this match. He might be able to fired his weapon in quick succession and taking down several Valkyrie with headshots, but there's no way in hell he'll survive the encounter with twenty-three Valkyries. Regardless, he had to try, it's the least he could do right now instead going down without a fight.

"Well Ryan-kun, you're the last one" Fuuka said to Ryan.

"I believe there are at least five other Vikings who got down after Kallen and Kiana boarded our dropship, what happened to them?" Ryan asked Fuuka.

"Bronya intercepted them mid-air, several pinpoint laser beam strike after they touched down. The beam strafe took down The Vikings Ryan mentioned" Bronya answered Ryan.

Well, the girl was the main reason why they were all downed on the ground. Ryan couldn't believe that none of The Vikings vanguard tried to take Bronya down first, wasn't the danger level that obvious without being told? He guessed that this was one more thing to add in the future lessons, initiatives.

"Surrender, Ryan! Otherwise, there's no way you'll be getting out of this nicely!" Kallen declared to Ryan.

"Oh, really? Surrender?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"The other option is to get beaten up by twenty-three Valkyries, which I'm sure going to be painful" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Clock's ticking Ryan, my finger starting to itch too. What's your choice?" Kiana asked Ryan with a grin on her face.

Ryan weighted his options and came to one with 'Fuck this shit, I'm going all out' option, this will be painful both figuratively and literally. Ryan took off his helmet in one swift motion, revealing his hardened crimson eyes and his spiky medium length emerald hair that swayed in the afternoon wind. The orange afternoon sky, with the sun started to set behind him, all of this make for a perfect closu re of the fight.

Mei and Sakura squinted their eyes due to the fact that Ryan suddenly widened his eyes, like he just realized something important then after some time he grinned devilishly. Both Kallen and Kiana tighten their grips on their gun with finger set on the trigger, they didn't like that look one bit. Mei stepped forward then went on Ryan's left side with katana on her right hand and she pointed it at Ryan, Sakura went around him just the same to his right side.

"Girls…Sorry to disappoint all of you, but I will not yield" Ryan said while smirking.

"Then your choice is set in stone!" Fuuka declared to Ryan.

"System command activation, authorization code, heaven's breaker!" Ryan said suddenly.

Mei's and Sakura's eyes widened when Ryan said that, he just activated Sleipnir Armor command console. Sleipnir Command Console were used as medium to customized the armor features and systems manually, this should only be done by an expert or someone who knew what were they doing. That meant either Ryan will activate Odin's Wrath Protocol or he will do something equally dangerous, they couldn't let that happened.

Mei and Sakura charged forward with katana's drawn, Kallen and Kiana fired off their guns toward Ryan. The bullets hit Ryan's shield while both katanas impacted his torso, but Ryan remained on his previous position. His body was shaking however as he still affected with two bullets that hit his head and two swords stabbed on his body, but this was the perfect condition.

"Shield burst!" Ryan shouted suddenly.

All of a sudden, Ryan's whole body glowed bright yellow before his shielding overload, exploded and dispersed in a huge shockwave that knocked back Sakura and Mei. Shield Burst was a defensive maneuver installed on Sleipnir that converted the energy in the shield into raw kinetic force, with this The Vikings had a defensive solution in case they were being overwhelmed in close quarters.

Shield Burst maneuver will collapse the shielding to be converted, that's why a Viking who just pulled off this maneuver was always vulnerable due to absence of their energy shield. The hidden feature was that this maneuver had two modes, either dispersed all over the body or concentrated in either wrist guard shield projector for release. The result of the second option? The Viking possessed a means to blow their targets with powerful shockwave at the expense of their shielding, with pin-pointed accuracy.

Ryan reached for the slot on his torso armor and took out the small vial with bright yellow liquid, he wasted no time as he pulled the cover of the vial and revealed the small injection needle on its edge. Ryan leaned his head to the right and injected the liquid into his neck, the effect was almost immediate as Ryan eyes widened followed by the surge of energy that he felt coursing through his entire body.

"Wait, Stimulant Injection?!" Kallen said in surprise.

"This guy's nuts!" Kiana said to Kallen.

Ryan grabbed an electro stun grenade, primed it then throwed it toward Kallen, Kiana and Fuuka. The trio evaded the grenade blast and each made their own way to attack the empowered Viking, Ryan fired at Fuuka who dodged the bullets, he reloaded his hand cannon in lightning speed and started firing at Kiana. Kallen saw the opening proceed to made a melee attack, she sent a high kick toward Ryan's face.

But Ryan used his remaining right arm to blocked Kallen's kick, the surprised Kallen can't react fast enough when Ryan aimed his gun toward her and fired. Kallen who struck by the hand cannon bullet was sent toward the ground, Kiana opted to used her grenade launcher and fired at Ryan but the flying grenade was shot by Ryan. The projectile exploded midair, it's a child's play for him.

Mei had recovered from the blast made a dash toward the last standing Viking, she fired off a grenade at Ryan who somehow noticed her and managed to dodged the incoming rounds. He was about to aimed at Mei when his right side get struck by Fuuka's fist, Ryan's thrown to the side but he recovered just as he landed to the ground.

"That guy was supposed to be on the ground right about now!" Kiana said to Fuuka.

"The injection helped a lot, but that won't last long. Keep hitting him and he'll succumb eventually!" Fuuka said to Kiana.

"Leave that to me!" A girl said from their backs.

Flash of pink went passed them in instant, the pink figure then stopped behind Ryan and revealed to be Sakura. She had her katana extended then she slowly sheathed it, time seems to be still during this progress. When the blade was completely sheathed, a pink diagonal slash mark appeared on Ryan's torso as his armor shielding failed and he took damage like Sakura just slashed him.

Sakura didn't often used this technique as frankly, it's quite tiring to pulled off so she usually only used this when she's sure that the target could be finished with this finishing move. She could do more than one slash using this technique but after she saw Ryan who already badly beaten enough earlier, she only gave one slash straight into his torso.

Well, the poor guy was kneeling because despite the temporary enhancement the injection gave him the impact of Sakura's strike still hurts like hell. Ryan started breathing heavily as his injuries started affecting him, he knew he's done soon but at the very least he could pull off one more attack toward the girls.

"Just surrender, Ryan-kun…You're no longer in the condition to fight" Mei said to Ryan softly.

"Can't do that, Mei…I got something I want to prove in this fight…that I'm not the type to take it lying down without a fight!" Ryan said while smiling a bit.

Ryan grabbed his last grenade he had on him, he decided to primed it but didn't release the trigger because he had to prepared himself. This maneuver should not be attempted in the future and this will guarantee him a room on Saint Freya's medical wing, so much for thinking they could beat The Valkyries with two weeks training experience. Next time this happens again, Ryan would made sure to come up with something better than this made up plan on the go.

Setting a throwing stance, Ryan seemed like he will throwed the grenade toward Bronya who already prepared a shield to cover her. But then suddenly he started running toward Kallen who was still on the ground, Kiana who saw that her cousin in harms way immediately fired her USP without any thought regarding her ammo on the weapons magazine.

One of the bullets impacted the grenade as Ryan got hit on his knees and dropped the said grenade, it exploded and it sent Ryan plummeting toward the ground hard. His nose bled due to landing face first into the ground, this also the time where his injuries took their full toll on his body. Ryan lied on the ground in prone position, he got up a bit to saw The Valkyries had mixed reactions. Some winced at the sight of his injuries, some remained passive and some had a glint of sympathy on their eyes.

Ryan had it, he was done with this match. Slowly he felt himself grown weaker and his vision darkened as he felt himself slowly about to passed out, all of that attack he received was quite taxing toward his body. He felt his face touched the ground when his body refused to respond,

This was it, the leader of The Vikings was downed. The end of the match where The Valkyries managed to beat The Vikings by losing half of their numbers, but it was well worth it because The Vikings lost their entire unit. Some of The Valkyries collapsed and seated on whatever they're currently on, the fight was proven to be perilous enough for them. The boys were sure something they underestimated all this time, if they could beat half of the first year Valkyries.

The Valkyries think they had won the fight, but they were dead wrong. With the last of his strength, Ryan raised his head from the ground and gathered his remaining energy into his throat. He produced the loudest shout he ever did that he's sure his throat will sore tomorrow morning.

"IIIIIGGGGOOOOORRRRRRR!" Ryan shouted with all his might.

The shout startled The Valkyries who were still there, including Kiana, Kallen, Sakura, Mei, Bronya and Fuuka. They knew that name, its one of Ryan's lieutenant who was an expert in explosive handling. Each of them wondering why did Ryan shouted the lieutenant's name, so loudly in fact that it startled all of them on the field.

Meanwhile, in the relay dish where there's no one guarding it since The Valkyries were focused in beating The Vikings. There was a Viking left in the area, remained unnoticed, remained still and he was so good at it that The Valkyries thought that he was downed already. But that's all a ploy because in midst of chaos Ryan caused, The Viking named Igor had set the Sonic Bomb in the most vulnerable part of the relay dish.

Igor heard Ryan shouted his name, Bronya and Fuuka realized what was the implication of Ryan's action as they turned their heads to saw the unguarded relay dish, Igor was sitting near the bomb because his injuries couldn't get him far away enough.

He'll had to do this suicidal move, Igor stared at The Valkyries and through his helmet binocular he saw Ryan nodded at him. Igor smiled as he pulled out the detonator he's readied before, he then held it toward the sky.

"Da svidanya, tovarisch…I'll see you on the medical wing. May Valhalla welcome us for this act!" Igor said while smiling.

With that, he slammed the detonator toward his chest plate with a grunt and the detonator beeped once as the Sonic Bomb exploded. The explosion thrown Igor away from the relay dish as he hit the ground hard then his unconscious body skidded all the way to the nearby wall, the relay dish then collapsed as it could no longer supported its structure after suffering catastrophic damage toward its weak point.

Ryan huffed once when he saw the result of Igor's work before muttering 'Took you long enough', he then gave up and lost his consciousness, The Valkyries stared in disbelieve because their moment of triumph turned into their catastrophic defeat. Some of The Valkyries even dropped their weapons due to the sheer shock, some lost their strength on their feet as they seated on the ground.

Kiana, Kallen, Mei, Fuuka, Sakura and Bronya looked toward the destroyed relay dish in disbelieve before they collectively turned their heads toward the unconscious Ryan, now they knew why he strived so hard to kept their attention to him…and the reason for that devilish grin.

The Vikings may had suffered total defeat, but damn they did get the job done even with only two weeks training experience they possessed. Imagine what will they become when they finished their training and education, a force to be reckoned with.

Few kilometers away from the battlefield, five figures alongside several operators watched the entire battle unfolded through invisible drone camera and local HUD broadcast. They saw the entire battle all the way from the beginning until the end, none of them even made a comment regarding the fight due to their intense focus in watching the entire event unfolded before their eyes. Not even the beverages and snacks available were touched by them, even though all five of them likes to drink alcohol.

One of them, a man with long white grayish hair styled in ponytail suddenly chuckled after the broadcast declared that The Viking were the victors of the match. He had known it, he actually bet against his wife and he won because damn he knew The Vikings had it in them to pulled this off. From the moment he saw The Vikings exploited the loophole in the rules, he knew how The Vikings wasn't taught to fight like a 'knight'.

"Well ladies, The Vikings are sure full of potential…I'm dying to meet their leader personally" The man said while smirking.

* * *

 **Weapons Trivia**

 **Brune Recoilless Rocket Launcher (BL): A rocket launcher made by Brune Arsenal Corporation, this compact rocket launcher was easy to operate, cheap and versatile. Multiple warhead types were available for this model ranging from the basic Anti-Tank warhead to Specialized Honkai Exterminator Warhead, the weapon widely used primarily within United Nations Armed Forces. Despite its advantage, this weapon didn't have a lock on feature so the operator had to be skilled enough when dealing with fast targets. Often shortened with terms Brune Launcher or BL, this weapon had attracted many attentions of fujoshi both inside and outside military forces. Needless to say, most of them were disappointed.**

 **Colt Anaconda: Large revolver styled hand cannon chambered with .44 Magnum bullets, it has huge build, huge recoil, badass firing sound and that made this gun hard to control. But that was a fair trade off for massive damage and savage knockback toward anyone who's unfortunate enough to get hit by this gun in close range, its also an instant kill weapon if used to murder someone from point blank range. The weapon was a common sight among D to C rank Valkyries on the frontline, its deadly capability only limited to its six rounds capacity. That was easily mitigated though as most Valkyries who were using this gun were expert in loading the gun with moon clip, a speed loader for reloading revolver type gun.**

 **Cross Machine Gun: A machine gun with Cross shape produced by Schicksal for Valkyries, the weapon was capable spewing 7.62mm rounds for twenty seconds straight before the magazine inside it had to be replaced with a fresh one. It has camera installed on it as well targeting computer, this made the weapon capable to be controlled remotely or set as sentry gun by targeting hostile automatically. The weapon was effective against Honkai creatures and often used to guard choke points or tactical positions by The Valkyries. This weapon was quite heavy and usually only The Valkyries that could use it effectively, normal soldier required at least two persons to lift it off the ground. In case of emergency, the weapon was sturdy enough to be a barricade against hostile attacks…that includes mother in law.**

 **Gatling Compact Gun Model 7 (GCGM7): On a glance, the weapon when packed looked your ordinary luggage usually sold in your average department store. But when its unpacked, this triple barreled Gatling Gun with capability to spit thirty 6.5mm Armor Piercing rounds per second was a sight to behold. This weapon was created by Schicksal as part of Project Asgard, The Vikings will need a reliable machine gun and this was the answer Schicksal came up with. The weapon was most effective against infantries or aircraft and struggles a bit when dealing with armor, but overall this weapon was a good choice when it comes to unloading hot lead straight into an enemy in sight. The gun had an effective range up to six hundred meters despite its quite short Gatling barrel, low flying aircraft would in for a deep shit.**

 **Heckler and Koch 40 Grenade Launcher (HK40GL): Single barreled grenade launcher produced by Heckler and Koch Company, this weapon had a lot of ammunition varieties and the most used weapon to launch grenade payload on Earth. Its actually just a grenade launcher attached to a weapon stock, the grenade launcher itself could be detached to be installed on another platform such as rifles. This weapon used 40mm grenades, single shot meant they had to be reloaded after firing once. How this weapon used really depends on its users, but there were no complaints about the effectivity this weapon gave when it performed on the field.**

 **Heckler and Koch USP .45: Compact pistol produced by Heckler and Koch company, its often the choice for security personnel or as backup weapon due to its performance and price. Each magazine filled with twelve .45 caliber bullets, the gun did well against human targets but unfortunately really sucked when it hit Honkai creature carapaces. Reliable and accurate, most Valkyries who choose to fight with handguns often used this gun during their training days in the academy. This gun had the perfect balance between its damage, recoil, accuracy and stability so its no surprise that it become popular so easily. Despite all of that, Kiana had complained about this gun multiple times especially concerning its damage. But as part of training plan devised by Siegfried, she still reluctantly kept using it until she finished the training part.**

 **Model 16 B Version Pulse Assault Rifle (M16B-PAR): United Nations Armed Forces standard issue weapon, filled with forty-five 4.50mm caliber bullets in each magazine, this weapon was the workhorse for most armies around the world…or, whatever left of them due to some countries were gone due to First Honkai Impact that happened decades ago. This rifle emphasized on damage more than fire rates and stability, that's why its recommended to be fired on burst fire or semi-automatic firing mode. Despite its shortcoming, the weapon was your best friend in most situation the world may throw at your face such as firefight against hostile armed forces or surviving when monsters trying to eat you…Just don't shoot a Chariot Class Honkai beast with it, the bullets will only tickle the beast. A young man once did that and he lost half of his right arm, poor bastard.**

 **Mark 20 Schicksal Assault Rifle (M20SAR): The standard issue weapon for non-Valkyrie Schicksal troops on Far Eastern Branch and a hot item on any battlefield due to its reliable performance. Loaded with thirty 7.62mm rounds per magazine, this bullpup styled rifle had proven itself to be all rounder in any combat situation. Customizable, easy to maintained and badass design were the strong points this gun had. Schicksal produced this weapon only for its own soldiers however, so it's rare for this gun to be seen outside Schicksal Far Eastern territory except in the black market or knock off's. This weapon also received overwhelmingly positive reviews from its users around the world, the weapon also had distinctive firing sounds so its victim knew that Schicksal troops were coming for them when they heard this gun being fired.**

 **Model 1911 Heavy (M1911H): A hand cannon specially built to be able being fired singlehandedly, the gun was an effective piece of equipment when it comes to dealing damage to any enemies in close quarter. Chambered with eight .50 caliber rounds per magazine, this hand cannon delivered harsh punishment to anyone dare to face it in close quarter combat. Light design yet strong build, this gun is often used by officers on militaries as their sidearm. Its production is limited however due to complex working mechanism this gun possessed, only few hundreds of it were made each year. Ryan Taurus was given this gun from an UNAF officer during Southern Japan Honkai Invasion, he was given the gun as a token for saving his life when the officer and his men surrounded by Honkai creatures.**

 **Nyx Sniper Rifle (NSR): Semi-automatic sniper rifle with quite the destructive firepower for one and half meter stick, chambered with ten 12.7mm anti-material bullets that could pierce through almost anything. Range was a bit short for this gun, but it's definitely a fair trade off for its firepower. Little known regarding its production history or who designed it, all the public know was that this weapon schematic appeared recently on Schicksal database. Even though there was no further information on its designer, Schicksal didn't seem to mind as long the weapon produced strong result on the field. The mystery weapon then named Nyx due to its black coloring, built in suppressor barrel and devastating firepower. Truly fearsome weapon, especially when used at night.**

 **Training Longsword: Blunt longsword with stun gun feature added into it, capable delivering painful hit and shocked the victim at the same time. The electricity was released automatically if the longsword blade hit something by measuring the impact force, this way the blade won't discharged electricity just by being touched. Despite possessing a blunt edge, this weapon still capable hurting someone badly if used with full power and on that note everyone who trained using this were encouraged to use protective gear. Vikings were given this weapon as their training melee weapon and they were happy with it because it's not too heavy, got the right range and a perfect backup weapon when out of ammo.**

 **Training Energy Katana: Functioned just as the same with the training longsword but its katana form was shaped by pure energy, this weapon produced the same effect as training longsword but the shocking power were stronger than the longsword. Being pure energy blade, this katana was actually felt almost weightless and that comes with its own benefit and problems. Being weightless meant that user of this weapon was capable launching fast attacks, but being weightless meant that the user must constantly be aware regarding its energy blade for a user was vulnerable to self-harm if its blade hit the user accidentally. Most Valkyrie using bladed weapons on Far Eastern Branch were issued this blade before they were permitted to carry a real katana, they need to be proficient in using this without self-harming themselves before they were deemed good enough to use a real blade.**

 **Tusk Shotgun Mark 1 (TSGM1): Tusk Shotgun Mark 1 was a pump action shotgun with eight shell capacity, the gun was developed by Schicksal when they realized they will need close encounter weapon that could dealt mean damage to its target. Thus, the Tusk Shotgun series was born, the weapon had served within Schicksal since First Honkai Impact and proven to be a zombie's bane. Eight 12 Gauge shotgun shells could really do quite the damage to anything that weren't bulletproof, the gun was reliable and customizable thus it's often relied on during close encounter in confined spaces. The only issue the gun had was its range that's a bit shorter than average shotgun, its effective range was only for ninety meters. Nevertheless, its still quite a pain to get hit by one even without getting into effective range. At point blank? Pray that the holder of this gun was an ally.**

 **Viper Auto Pistol (VAP): Handgun with fully automatic firing mode and large bullet reserve available for each magazine, this handgun with thirty 9mm rounds capacity was the best choice when it comes to rapid assault. Amazing accuracy in continuous fire, manageable recoil but laughable damage if it came in contact with Honkai beast carapaces. This weapon was the sidearm choice for most Vikings Far Eastern recruits since their focus in combat with humanoid sized opponents, its chosen because most of them doesn't give a shit regarding how many hot rounds they could pump into a target. Victoria teach them to 'Always do a double tap, one to the heart and one to the head. If you doubt that your target's dead, squeeze couple of rounds on it. If you doubt even further, empty your fucking magazine on it to be sure'.**

* * *

 **Preview for the next chapter (New dynamics)**

 **"And that's what make this scene, quite a peculiar sight"**

 **"You're a Kaslana, aren't you?"**

 **"Wait! You forgot about me?!"  
**

 **"And I see that it was in the genes, we saw how you fight...Like father like son, I suppose"**

 **"I agree with Ryan somehow! You need some help man!"**

 **"...You're in deep mess"**

 **"Glad to hear it doc, thanks for putting this on me"**

 **"Make sure you made up your mind, there's no turning back once you make your decision"**

 **"You changed your profession?"**

 **"Come over the dormitory tonight, we'll feed you"**

* * *

 **Status Update**

 **Ryan Taurus, Asgard Warrior**

 **Rank: Experimental Viking Program Recruit, First Generation Leader**

 **Acheivement Unlocked: You never see it coming!**


	3. New dynamics

_College, yeah I need to pass so I was kind of held back for a bit. As always, thank you for the reviews guys, here's the continuation of the story...I found out that writing ordinary days scene was actually harder than the action packed ones, another lesson learned._

* * *

It was a normal morning for the City of Soukai's residents, everyone did their daily routine and the weather was nice. This city was one of the few cities on Earth that housed primary humanities forces that could fight against Honkai, the few true safe havens' left available on the planet. On Saint Freya Academy, the students went to school to learn and train themselves to be a Valkyrie as normal as the other day.

But two weeks ago, Schicksal decided to commenced the execution of Project Asgard. The project resulted being thirty male students, all of them would have to attend the academy as part of their education and training. At first, both genders on first year were impassive with each other as both had their own objectives, roles and social groups themselves. All of that, changed because a mock battle they did yesterday.

The first mock fight between Valkyries and Vikings that resulted in the victory of The Vikings, most of the girls still couldn't believe the fact that The Vikings were able to stole victory flag in the very last moment.

In the end, The Vikings suffered total casualties but it resulted with the first year Valkyries started to acknowledged the boys that they were indeed a force to be reckoned with. The Vikings, after witnessing how strong were The Valkyrie also now regarded them with sense of respect of their own toward the girls.

"And that's what make this scene, quite a peculiar sight" Mei said to Kallen.

The Valkyries and The Vikings who were minding their own business since yesterday, now all of them could be seen talking to each other as if they've become friends overnight. Most of them reminisced the battle yesterday, discussed their interest or hobbies and some could be seen joking with one another. It's truly a refreshing sight to see now that the first years, all of them got along with each other.

"The change in social dynamic happened overnight, possible catalyst was the yesterday's mock battle" Bronya said to Mei.

"I agree, even now I think The Vikings are skilled enough to face off against The Valkyrie. I see them as equal to our own" Mei confessed to Bronya.

"Yeah, I agreed with you Mei…Seeing this change is quite refreshing, isn't that right Kiana?" Kallen asked Kiana.

"Fine, they were quite good. But not good enough! They still lost to us in the fight!" Kiana said while grinning.

The classroom door was opened and Himeko entered the classroom with her data terminal, the students immediately sat down on their respective seats. That's when they noticed that several seats were empty, there were four students absent from the classroom today.

"Role call! Who isn't present today?" Himeko asked the class.

"Igor Kamarov, Rahn Killian and Ryan Taurus, ma'am" Someone answered from the door.

Gin Yamato entered the classroom with cast on his left arm, he had a crutch on his right arm to help him walked because of his busted right leg and his face looked tired. He walked toward Himeko on the front podium, then he handed her the letters that were all letter from Saint Freya Medical Wing resident doctor. Himeko opened all three letters and she had her brow furrowed upon digesting the content, now it's all made sense.

Igor Kamarov suffered minor internal bleeding, tiny fracture on the ribs and concussion. Rahn Killian suffered severe concussion, dislocated right shoulder and bruised right eye. Ryan Taurus suffered extreme fatigue as consequences using Stimulant Injection after effect and first degree burns on his torso due to extensive contact with energy katana blade. All of them currently being treated on Saint Freya's Medical Wing, they were expected to be there until the end of the week.

"How bad are their wounds, Gin?" Kallen asked suddenly.

"Ah nothing they can't handle. Mostly concussion, dislocated limbs and extreme fatigue for after effect using Stimulant Injection" Gin answered Kallen.

"Ryan was too reckless with drugs, Igor tried suicide bombing, Gin had to go with banzai charge alongside Rahn who thoughted that speed could beat Fuuka…Yeah, poor sods, they earned those wounds" James said then sighed.

Most of The Vikings and The Valkyries only suffer minor wounds such as sprain, headache and sore muscles, apparently it wasn't the case for the four Vikings mentioned. As stated by James, the actions these four Vikings did resulted in them earned their battle scars legitimately. In the eyes of The Vikings, these four guys were the real heroes for putting immense effort against the girls.

Despite Igor and Ryan's action during the battle, it was Gin and Rahn who apparently beaten up bad enough by Fuuka that their armor suffered some damages. Both of them had the visor of their helmet cracked, their shoulder pads were dented, Gin's left wrist guard were broken, the right leg guard unhinged from its place and Rahn got the left part of his helmet dented after he got kicked hard…Fuuka did admitted she went a bit overboard, she asked forgiveness to Gin who forgives her easily and she sent a letter of apology to Rahn because he's not woken up yet.

"Alright guys, I know all of you still feeling the after effect from yesterday's battle. It's quite intense after all, I admit that. But now is the time for first period, you could continue later during break" Himeko said to the students.

.

Few days later. On Ryan Taurus's treatment room, the said patient was seated on his bed and currently stared at someone who was seated on a chair to his right. The said man has big build, long white grayish hair in ponytail, sea blue eyes and shallow beard on his face. He wore dark blue coat with black shirt underneath it, it was also equipped with chest guard and shoulder pads that looked quite worn out.

"…You're a Kaslana, aren't you?" Ryan asked the man.

"White hair is dead giveaway, yeah I'm one" The man answered.

"And you're here for?" Ryan asked the man again.

"What? I can't visit you, Ryan?" The guy asked Ryan.

Who the heck was this guy? Ryan had never met someone like or look like him on his entire life. But he would tread lightly on this one, who knows what were his intention coming here. He looked at the shoulder pad that the man wore and saw the logo of Schicksal…At least the man was on the same side currently, that still wasn't enough to let his guard down however.

"Normally, you visited someone you knew during this case" Ryan said.

"Wait?! You forgot about me?!" The man looked clearly shocked.

"Uh…am I supposed to know you?" Ryan left eyebrow rose in confusion.

"Hah…I guess that can't be helped dear" A female voice was heard.

A woman with waist long silver hair entered the Ryan's recovery room, her aqua marine blue eyes looked at Ryan with hint of sorrow on it. The man on Ryan's bedside also looked away from Ryan with look of mourn painted on his face, this had gotten Ryan more confused than ever. Why would these two looked like they just saw something horrible? The lady then nodded herself as if to steeled her nerves before she talked to Ryan again.

"How do you feel, Ryan?" The woman asked Ryan.

"…Fine for now. I'm confused though, how do both of you knew me?" Ryan asked them both.

"We were Fredrick's Taurus good friends" The man said.

"…Dad's friends?! Wha, I didn't remember anything regarding him befriending a Kaslana! But, then again…My memories, they were hazy" Ryan said in somber tone.

This was one of the most inconvenient and frustrating things on Ryan's current life. It seemed his memory were being hazy and unclear during the first seven years of his life. He wasn't sure how, he wasn't sure why, it's just a mystery he didn't had the chance to solve. But even with all that, despite him forgot about his face, Ryan still recognized the fact that his father's name was Fredrick Taurus. Apparently, these two people was supposed to be good friends of his and one of them was from Kaslana family. His father sure had some connections.

"How far back could you remember clearly?" The man asked Ryan.

"Since I'm seven years old…I can't remember much before that" Ryan answered honestly.

Both Kaslanas nodded at each other in silent affirmation, Ryan was confused but for now he had to remain calm. Perhaps they will explain to him why the both of his dad supposed good friends suddenly showed up on the room he admitted to, on Saint Freya Academy no less.

"Its no wonder, we met often when you were a little kid. At age seven, your parents moved to Southern Japan" The woman said.

"I see…I didn't remember father that much…do you know what happened to him?" Ryan asked the woman.

"He uh…he's fallen in battle, during Second Honkai Impact…He saved both of us, in fact" The woman said with somber tone.

"Oh…So that's how he…huh, mom never talked much about him" Ryan said as he looked at his feet.

It was the truth, Aurora almost never talked about his father unless he asked her something regarding him. The way his mother talked about him, reminiscing him, even she sometimes fallen asleep while crying, Ryan sure that his mother loved his father so much. Ryan was not dumb, even though his mother never stated on where was he or what happened to him, it was clear by how she acted that his father was no longer on this world...

Ryan's memory also became so obscure regarding anything before him turning seven, it was confusing to be honest. He never really told Aurora regarding this matter, so it's kind of his own fault too now that he didn't had the answers he needed…He forgot his father's own face and its clear that asking about him to Aurora only made her more sad, Ryan being a considerate good son didn't asked too much question about him…At least, he wanted to see his mother smiled more.

"I'm sure Aurora was still in deep grieve, even decades later…When we heard about Southern Japan invasion, we rushed there to find you but…we never could. We assumed the worst when we heard…that Aurora was in the center of the incident" The woman said to Ryan.

"…Ah, sorry about that. I uh, was kind of a militia and I went MIA for quite a bit. Next thing I knew, Schicksal got hold of me and here we are" Ryan said.

"Yeah, we just knew that you were attending Saint Freya in fact. Its good though, to see the son of our good friend still alive" The man said while smiling.

"Thank you…though, I'm…not what you expected" Ryan said as he looked down.

The man and woman both looked at each other before something clicked on their heads, they had read on what happened to him from Schicksal database. He was no longer a human, he's able to transformed into Honkai beast with unknown classification. Schicksal Vanguard reports on him said that the form he's transformed to was humanoid, with black corneas and deep purple irises. His skin was covered in Honkai beast carapace, his right hand that was grown back when he's transformed also dissolved when he changed back to a human.

There were lots of potential that Ryan's Honkai form possessed, he wasn't able to fully explore the powers yet…He didn't have the chance yet. But Ryan already made up his mind, that creature that transformed him must had chosen him for a reason that were currently unknown to him. The power he was bestowed upon, he will explore it and realized it's full potential. He just needed the place where he could secretly study the form.

"We know, we've read your files Ryan…But don't worry, that doesn't change anything to us…Oh well, I suppose reintroduction is in order. My name's Siegfried Kaslana and this is my wife, Cecilia Kaslana" Siegfried introduced them both.

"…Holy shit, both of you were like Schicksal aces and my father's good friend with you both!? Damn, I'm shocked!" Satria was shocked, genuinely.

"And I see that it was in the genes, we saw how you fight…Like father like son I suppose" Siegfried said.

Siegfried watched how Ryan fight, both the mock battle and the recorded training sessions. He wasn't trained by his father directly, he may never saw him fight in close quarter but the way Ryan moves and how he handled firearms were so close to how Fredrick did in the past. How both of them being a gunslinger, fearsome close quarter combat opponents and what appears to be, both were man with a plan. That's why Siegfried could confidently said that his skill was inherited from the genes, he was similar to his father in more ways than one.

"Now that we know each other again, feel free to contact us if you need any help okay? We lived on Soukai too, we moved recently. I hope you could drop by sometime in the near future?" Cecilia asked Ryan.

"I would love to…Hey can I ask you something? Who's your daughter? Kiana or Kallen?" Ryan asked Cecilia.

"That will be Kiana, she's in the same batch as you. I'm sure you two know each other" Cecilia said to Ryan.

"By names only I'm afraid, though this changes my perspective a bit" Ryan said as he smiled.

.

"It's been few days and the three of them hasn't back on class yet" Kallen said out loud.

"Well, their wounds were quite serious after all compared to the others" Mei said to Kallen.

"Have you checked on them?" Kallen asked Mei.

"They were put on restricted part so we can't go, apparently the doctors are using their new medicines and equipment's to heal them faster last I heard" Mei said.

"Basically, they got experimented upon" Bronya said.

"…You aren't wrong" Kallen said while cringing a bit.

Kallen, Mei, Bronya and Kiana were making their way to a spot on the academy's mini-park. The place was the usual place they went to during lunch break, the mini-park also loitered by other students who were either having lunch, reading or just taking a nap for some cases.

"But really, it sucks for them. They should know better before risking themselves to challenge a Valkyrie in direct combat, they aren't superhumans. Their armor alone won't protect them from the full might of a Valkyrie" Kiana commented.

"That's the proof that they were quite brave…Just imagine yourself get outnumbered by enemies that is literally stronger than you, the thought alone is quite frightening" Mei said to Kiana.

"I'll be pumped up to take them down instead of being scared!" Kiana said while grinning.

"Honestly, is there nothing that could scare you, Kiana-chan?" Mei asked aloud.

"That would be…my mom" Kiana said while smiling nervously.

Kallen, Kiana, Mei and Bronya arrived on their usual spot and started eating their lunch underneath the shade of trees when they spotted a couple with white and silver hair approached them from the medical building. Kiana who was munching on her sausage almost chocked at the sight of her parents at the academy without her knowing, she started contemplating on the reason why the both of them were here.

"Mom, dad? What are you doing here?" Kiana asked to both of them.

"Oh, it's Kiana! There's Kallen, Mei and Bronya too!" Siegfried said while smiling.

"Hey darling, we just have some business with Ryan" Cecilia said.

At the mention of the name from Cecilia, Kiana looked down upon her lunch with a small frown plastered on her face. Cecilia looked at Kiana who then quickly shook her head a little before she pulled off her usual confident smile, that expression of her might slipped from her friends and cousin but Cecilia was no fool when it came to her daughter. Something's up and she will find out what, Kallen who heard that Siegfried and Cecilia managed to visited the leader of The Vikings then decided to ask.

"Ryan? Ryan Taurus? You know him aunty?" Kallen asked Cecilia.

"Kind of, there's a bit complicated situation but I believe we resolved it temporarily. Anyway, while we're at it" Cecilia said.

Cecilia stepped forward and pinched Kiana's left cheek as she protested, though Kiana couldn't really do anything against her mother. Never even once she managed to beat Cecilia during their training session even when she teamed up with her father, her mother wasn't an S Rank Valkyrie for nothing. Mei amusedly watched the scene, it seemed Kiana told the truth regarding what she feared of as Mei got direct proof in front of her.

"I told you we will return yesterday, but I saw our house is on terrible state this morning! Garbage pile on living room, your room's thrashed and the kitchen looked like a battlefield. What did you do while we're away?" Cecilia asked while smiling menacingly.

"U-Uh, I forgot to cleaned up after waking up late today! I promised to clean it up when I got home, mom!"

"No, it'll be clean before that because I can't stand it. You're in for a lecture when you get home, young lady!" Cecilia said.

"Urk…okay" Kiana said nervously.

"Mei, Bronya, how are you both?" Cecilia asked the two girls.

"We're doing fine, Cecilia-san" Mei said while smiling.

"Bronya is in fine condition, Miss Cecilia" Bronya said, face impassive as ever.

"Splendid! Kallen, Vannesa give me something that were meant for you, drop by our house after school, okay?" Cecilia said to Kallen.

"I'll be sure to do that, aunty" Kallen replied while smiling.

Not long after that while the group chatted with each other, the medical wing's door slammed open and everyone could saw Ryan wearing blue hospital gown, messy emerald hair with fear painted on his face. Beside him was Rahn which on the same state, both running and limping from something. The door reopened and Igor came out with impassive face, same hospital gown and fully bandaged head but he had a TSGM1 on his hands. He slowly walked toward Ryan and Rahn who stopped to catch their breath, then he pumped the shotgun.

"I stand by my word, Igor!" Ryan said to Igor.

"I agree with Ryan somehow, you need some help man!" Rahn said to Igor.

"I double dare you to repeat what you said to me, Rahn!" Igor said menacingly.

"I said, your waifu is shit! She is a triple S whor-" Rahn suddenly shouted.

BANG!

Rahn was thrown back after gotten hit by electro stun pellets in the face, Ryan face hardened as he prepared to made a mad dash toward the school gate. Igor pumped the shotgun with one hand then he aimed at Ryan, who were in dilemma to make or break. Needless to say, everyone who saw this were confused beyond hell especially Kiana, Kallen, Bronya and Mei. Wasn't Ryan's doctor letter told them he suffered extreme fatigue? Then how come he's able to stand in front of them with shotgun pointed at him just in few days? Was that meant the doctors successfully healed them with the experimental medicine?

Kiana looked at Kallen who could only shrug out of her confusion, Bronya's face remained impassive while she watched and munched on her lunch. Mei could be seen putting on confused yet intrigued expression on her face. Siegfried and Cecilia though, both were stunned about the fact that it's only been less than five minutes since they left him and he already caused a scene.

"Goddamnit Rahn!" Ryan sighed.

"Don't make this anymore harder, tovarisch. You're like a brother to me!" Igor said to Ryan.

"I know! But I have to stand my ground, I'm a man with a spine for god sake!" Ryan shouted at Igor.

"If you're a man, you'd surrender quietly and follow me to The Gulag!" Igor shouted to Ryan.

"No way! I don't want to! Let me go home!" Ryan protested at Igor.

But suddenly Ryan and Igor both fell on the ground, they went unconscious just as several doctors and nurse came out with three stretchers with them. Two of the nurses were carrying dart guns on their hands, they immediately grabbed the three unconscious young men and put them on the stretcher before they prepared them to be hauled back to the medical wing. Siegfried decided to asked them regarding the scene that just happened before them, he went and talked to one of the doctors.

"Hey, what's going on?" Siegfried asked one of the doctors.

"Oh, Master Siegfried. We apologized for the scene they caused, all of this is an accident. A hallucinogen was accidentally released on the lab, when we were performing final medical check on the three. We're the only ones who had gas mask so by the time we manage to get things under control, the three boys had escaped from the room…You know the rest" The doctor said.

"Uh…Thanks for the info doc. But how come one of them got a shotgun?" Siegfried curiously asked, he just had to.

"…This school's security personnel were no match for those three even with hallucinogen affecting them, one of them would like her shotgun back after she got assaulted by Mr. Kamarov" The doctor said as he checked on Rahn's pulse.

"…Hope she didn't press charges" Siegfried said with bitter smile on his face.

"On the contrary, she was founded leaning on the wall with dazed look on her face. It seems that's the first time she got cornered to the wall by a huge, handsome men while he took the shotgun in her hands…The experience must be quite stimulating for her, I believe the term was Kabe-don or something?" The doctor said absent-mindedly.

"…Really" Siegfried said with half closed eyes.

Siegfried couldn't believe what the world might threw him sometimes, the sheer randomness of this event was what he meant by that. Nevertheless, it was quite the tale and he only watched as the doctors and nurses brought back their escaped patients after subduing them before they could go on rampage inside the academy.

"I've seen and heard a lot of things in my life, but this is definitely the first time I heard stories that came straight up from a manga" Siegfried said as he walked toward Cecilia.

.

The three Vikings was released a day after that, they could finally go back to their daily life healthy and sound. But apparently, Ryan weren't that thrilled with the prospect of returning after he saw how much he had left on his bank account this morning. He didn't want to believe it but the letters he got today was a straight to the crotch hit. He got fired by the company that he part time worked because frankly it's been three weeks since he last worked for them, the company thought he's dead in the alley of Soukai already. So, when they found out he's alive but too busy to work, they fired him that instant.

The said young man was now currently sat in front of his apartment door, looking depressed as hell with billing notification letters in hand. If he calculated this right, he had around 5.692 credit's left on his account, that could last him ten days at best and three days at worst. His part time were paid weekly and that was 3.000 credits, standard minimum payment for workers on Soukai was 20.000 credits in average monthly so Ryan actually only got so little of it weekly.

Situation for him was dire though, he had to pay the electricity and water bill for this month and that was around 5.200 credit. So that would make Ryan only possessed 492 credits that he could spend on food and other necessities, a full serving ramen packaging cost 10 credit each and not to mention other necessities such as cleaning products and maintenance stuff for his gun. Needless to say, he was fucked beyond recovery. That's the reason why now he's sitting in front of his own apartment door, looking depressed with down casted eyes and frown painted on his face.

"What wouldn't I give for money now? I'd throw my virginity away in a heartbeat to some lonely housewife just to get by without starving this month!" Ryan said out loud.

But fate really wanted to mess with Ryan, it found him to be a good source of amusement. Why? Because it just happened when he said that, Kallen and Sakura just came back from their grocery shopping. Both were talking when they spotted Ryan seated in front of his apartment door because they were curious, they quiet down to asked him what was his problem. They didn't expect to heard about Ryan willing to sell his own virginity just to get cash!

Sakura gasped in shock while Kallen dropped the grocery after being petrified by that statement alone, the dropped grocery made Ryan turned his head and he cursed at anything holy because his luck was complete shit with girls. He sighed loudly and facepalmed with his hand that full of bills, scattering the letters on the floor.

"R-Ryan?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"Sorry, I was out of my mind there…What is it, Sakura?" Ryan asked after he sunk deeper on the floor.

"…Are you alright? You look like in need of help" Sakura asked Ryan regarding his condition.

"I want to say 'I'm okay, thank you for worrying about me' but…" Ryan trailed off.

"But?!" Kallen asked him to continue.

Kallen still haven't recovered from the shock so she's a bit jumpy, who wouldn't when someone heard their neighbor and classmate were about to prostitute himself. Her blue eyes caught a glimpse of the letters, Kallen took one on her hands. Its written as 'Ryan Taurus – Monthly Electric and Water Bill' and since curiosity got the better of her, Kallen inspected the letter inside to find the nominal for the bill.

"…This is quite normal for a bill, what's wrong with this?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"I haven't gone to work for three weeks" Ryan said.

"…And?" Sakura urged him to continue.

"After calculating everything, I only have 492 credits left in my account after paying the bills…and no job, so yeah…I'll be starving by the next week" Ryan said in low tone.

This time, Sakura and Kallen winced at the young man's situation. Both girls knew the importance of living budget due to their parents were not in Soukai, the money given weren't always enough for their daily needs so finding part time work was not a strange occurrence for a high school student. Not having money during the time of need such as Ryan's situation now would spell doom, it was mandatory to pull all the necessary stops when someone landed on this situation. On Ryan's case? It seemed he was prepared to be a gigolo. Too extreme for the two girls, but they could saw the desperation on his face.

"…You're in deep mess" Kallen commented.

"No shit" Ryan said.

"Have you…found another job?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"Not at the moment, tomorrow I will receive a mechanical arm from Theresa so…I'll have to wait until tomorrow to find a job" Ryan answered while shrugging.

Ryan mentioned a mechanical arm and that caught Kallen's attention, maybe she could help him get out of this problem. Kallen was a regular on a café near Saint Freya Academy, she was a close friend to its manager and recently she had complained about the lack of male employee on the shop. Maybe Kallen could offered them both some win-win solution?

"Hey Ryan, have you ever worked in a restaurant before?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"I haven't but I got the general idea on what to do" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Splendid! Tomorrow, after you received your mechanical arm, I want you to meet me at the school gate. I just got the perfect solution for your money problem!" Kallen said while smiling.

"Really? You would help me!?" Ryan asked Kallen, with his eyes bulged wide.

"We're neighbors, aren't we? We should help each other when needed!" Kallen said.

"Yes! Thank you, Kallen! Man, glad I have a friend like you. I'll pay you back somehow!" Ryan said while smiling broadly.

Kallen and Sakura only smiled at seeing him cheered up already, Kallen felt a bit happy that Ryan considered her a friend of his. Ryan was relieved that his neighbor was so kind to him, she was definitely a savior in his eyes. Just then he realized that he presumptuously called Kallen his friend out loud and he felt like kicking himself, what was he doing by jumping the gun by calling her that? Before he could apologize though, he saw Kallen smiled sweetly at him. It was then he concluded that Kallen thoughted the same thing, he was relieved to say the least.

"You could do that when you got paid already, it's alright" Kallen said casually.

"Oh Kallen, the groceries!" Sakura said in realization.

"Right! I dropped them!" Kallen said.

Both Kallen and Sakura bend over to picked any groceries that's fallen on the floor, Ryan too proceed to help them. Because Sakura were wearing light blue blouse, her clothes were a bit loose on the front area when she bended down. Ryan just happened to looked at Sakura when she unknowingly giving him generous view of her D cup round breast cladded in white frilly bra, he gulped as he burned the memory to his brain as fast as the brain's natural information processor could performed in split seconds.

He was no hypocrite like those generic shounen anime protagonists, he embraced his manly side and that include his own raging teenage testosterone hormones. The reason why he wasn't labelled as a pervert was because he didn't openly show it, he kept quiet to himself. That was why he could silently admire the view in front of him, regardless he couldn't stare too long. Some research said that women were sensitive to a man's stare, Ryan wouldn't wanted to get caught red handed by Kallen or Sakura herself.

"Thanks for helping" Sakura smiled at Ryan.

"Don't mention it" Ryan smiled back at Sakura.

The three separated their ways as they went inside their own apartments, Kallen proceeded to the kitchen where she put the ingredients on the fridge and prepared to cook dinner since it's her turn today. Sakura seated herself on the sofa before she sighed, she turned on the TV and switched it to the channel where they usually watched their afternoon drama.

She's supposed to be excited about the tv drama series that's about to started, but all Sakura could think right now was how she caught Ryan stared at her back in the hall. That's right! She possessed sharper intuition than an average woman so she caught how her neighbor apparently checking out her boobs when she bended down in front of him…Well, at least now she knew that Ryan wasn't gay. She felt her cheeks got warmer and she laid herself on the couch while hugging her knees, this was something new to her.

"Sakura?" Kallen asked Sakura.

"Y-Y-Yes?!" Sakura answered while stuttering.

"I've been calling you for a while now, are you okay?" Kallen asked from the kitchen.

"I'm fine Kallen, just a bit distracted" Sakura said.

Somehow, Sakura felt glad that Ryan saw her as a girl. She had been training ever since she could swing a sword so she's often felt insecure that perhaps she looked too boyish in the eyes of the guys, it didn't help with the fact she also went to all-girls school during her time on her junior high school so her experience with guys were less than minimal for a girl going through puberty such as her.

It seems that's about to change from now on, Saint Freya Academy was no longer an all-girls school and she had a boy she was interested in. It would do her good to start exploring daily life interaction with the opposite sex, but just how would she learn that? Asking this to Kallen somehow felt embarrassing for her, she was not that good with the technology but it seems that was her only way out for now. Seeing Kallen was busy in the kitchen, Sakura took out her smartphone, went to the browser app and start typing 'How to interact with boys around your age while showing your female charms'.

Kallen took a peek at Sakura from the kitchen and she saw Sakura was reading something on her phone intently, she only smiled as she continued making their dinner when she saw Sakura occasionally saying 'Is that so', 'will this actually work?' and 'Hmm, interesting'. Kallen thoughted that Sakura must be reading a new cooking article, Sakura loved to cook after all…It was at that time that Kallen didn't knew, how wrong she was.

.

"Right, we're done here"

Ryan looked to his right hand and there was a black colored mechanical hand on it, it's completely silent when he flexed it and he's able to moved it like it's his own nonexistent biological hand. Ryan tried to touched the finger parts and he felt a sensation on the fingertips like something touched him, the hand was capable to detect even the smallest sensation of touch.

All of a sudden though, the female doctor in charge took a 'medical' hammer and brought it down on Ryan's right hand's palm. Ryan instinctively pulled back his hand and stared at her in shock, but then he looked back at his new right hand because he noticed one thing. He didn't feel any kind of pain, not even for a bit…That's convenient.

"Do you feel any pain?" The doctor asked Ryan.

"I felt a sensation of the hammer touch…But no pain" Ryan answered the doctor.

"Good, that mean everything goes well…The mechanical hand installed on your right arm is capable to interpret any kind of neurological signals, it can sense a touch or even applied pressure toward it. But pain receptor, is something that we don't install to it so even if you get this new arm torn apart…You wouldn't feel any pain from it, just the sensation like your hand got massaged…harshly" The doctor said while grinning.

"…That sounds convenient and creepy at the same time" Ryan said nervously.

"Had to admit it is. The only downside is that this hand is still on prototype phase, so its number is limited. Do us a favor by keeping it intact at least until we could produce another hand alright?"

This was the part that Ryan couldn't promised her, she really wanted him to be careful? Didn't she know what was he doing for his weekdays? He's a Viking for god sake, the chance for something to blew up his right hand was not nonexistent! He was unable to gave her his word when his daily activity revolved around gunfights, explosives handling and tactical close quarter combat! Something could go wrong so suddenly!

"No promises" Ryan said while smiling.

"Heh, figures…Oh yeah, you're a Viking, aren't you? This hand of yours is compatible with Sleipnir Armor Operating System as well, rest assured about compatibility when trying to use them at the same time" The doctor said as she got up from her seat beside Ryan.

"Glad to hear it doc, thanks a lot for putting this on me" Ryan said gratefully.

"Don't mention it. Oh, we also have to gather data from that equipment so you have to come here once a month to submit the data" The doctor said as she tidied up her desk.

There's the catch that Ryan had waited for, he knew that there's no way this arm would be given for free. But the payment was quite simple enough, just the data regarding the motions of his right hand. It was quite cheap compared to purchasing a mechanical arm outside Schicksal, there was no guarantee that it would also last during combat too.

"I guess that's the payment…Wait, you mean, whatever motions I made with my hand? For a month?" Ryan asked the doctor.

"Yeah and I mean, every right-hand movement, even the pattern it makes…If you had to relieve yourself, try using your left hand okay? Hahahahahahaha!" The doctor merrily laughed at him.

"…Thanks for the advice" Ryan said with a hint of discomfort on his face.

The door opened and Theresa came inside, dressed in nun outfits as usual but without her veil today. Theresa looked at Ryan's new mechanical arm then she smiled and nodded in satisfaction when she saw Ryan moved it around with all kind of movement he could tried, like a little kid who just got his dream toy.

"Are you finished, doctor?" Theresa asked the doctor.

"We're done here ma'am, no complications during installation or initial use. Long term use is still questionable however" The doctor said to Theresa.

"That's fine for now, anything else?" Theresa asked the doctor further.

"Aside for my concern regarding him being someone that will be thrust in combat often, I found that he's the most perfect candidate since he will have to make a lot of movement. He's the most perfect source for data gathering" The doctor said her opinion.

Another reason why Ryan was chosen for the prototype mechanical arm, he was training as a Viking and him being thrusted into combat will be an occurrence that often happen in the future. The data gathered from all of that would serve Schicksal well in many departments, it would also give them further insight on bio-mechanical field in the hope of one day they would be able to produce satisfying result from the data that Ryan could provide them with.

"Good to hear that. How is it, Ryan?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"Christmas comes early for me" Ryan simply commented.

Both Theresa and Ryan bid the doctor farewell and they exited Saint Freya Medical wing, faced with the afternoon sky. Ryan followed Theresa to a spot underneath a tree where she sat and rested herself against the tree's trunk. She had a long talk with Cecilia last night and now she knew the connection between Ryan's father and them, it was very unfortunate that Theresa didn't knew about him that much. Getting posted with different unit during the war was the primary causes, but it's also her own fault that she was less attentive with the friends that Siegfried and Cecilia had.

"I…heard about your father from Cecilia. Even though he was a good friend to Sieg and Cecilia, I never knew him…It's a shame" Theresa said.

"I see…did you know how he died?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"No, I don't…the last person that saw him alive was Cecilia, she must've kept it herself until she could tell you about it" Theresa said to Ryan.

"Yeah well, I'm still sick few days ago…Might be a good chance when I visited their home, to asked her about father" Ryan said while rubbing the back of his head.

Ryan joined Theresa by seated himself on the same tree trunk as Theresa, both kept quiet as only afternoon wind passed between them that made a sound. The fact that Ryan can't remember what happened at him before seven years old was discomforting, seven years of memory can't just disappear that easily…Something must have happened when Ryan turned seven years old, perhaps he could find a lead by talking to Siegfried and Cecilia.

"Oh, Siegfried is interested in you, Ryan" Theresa said suddenly.

"…Sorry but, I'm a straight man and wasn't he married to a beautiful woman?" Ryan answered cheekily.

"Mou! You really take my word out of context! Not that kind of interest, seeking student like interest! Get it!?" Theresa said with puffed cheeks.

"Hahahaha, I know, no need to get so worked up…He wants to teach me?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"Yeah, but in the end its up to you. Siegfried is one of the best Schicksal Knight in this era, despite his looks and attitudes, he gets the job done ninety-nine percent all the time…Someone as good as that, would make more than a decent teacher for the leader of The Vikings, don't you think?" Theresa asked Ryan back.

"…Sounds appealing, I'll think about it" Ryan gave non-comital answer.

"Make sure you made up your mind, there's no turning back once you make your decision" Theresa told Ryan to be careful in making his decision.

Siegfried was one of the best knights that Schicksal has? That wasn't seemed far fetched seeing that the married couple was actually Schicksal Ace Fighters…Despite all that though, Ryan had to sorted out everything first and that included on his purpose in life. He knew what he wanted, he wanted to fulfill his mother wish and that was to continue living and find happiness. The question would be, what would be happiness itself?

Sure, he's alive now, even in charge of Schicksal experimental combat unit. But was he happy with his current life? Certainly not, he got bills to pay and his pocket was basically empty! Did anyone ever showed him love? His parents did, his teammates saw him as a leader and there were no girls involved in his life…Wait, love life huh?

He's interested in women that's for sure, the question was why didn't he try to find a girlfriend? For god sake, Saint Freya was a heaven for someone single like him! Beautiful girls were everywhere within his sight! If he didn't want to date a Valkyrie, the regular schooling division were still all girls! Why the heck didn't he think that? Yeah, Ryan guessed that's because he wanted to make sure he'll survive the training to become a Viking first.

"Well, HOMU Medieval Adventure is about to air so I better get back to my chamber!" Theresa said as she got up.

"…Wait, wasn't that aimed for kids?" Ryan furrowed his eyebrows.

"You got a problem with that!? It says all age on the promotional image!" Theresa said.

Ryan had to held back his laugh and blushing face because damn! Theresa when angry were super cute, puffed cheeks along her face that shows her insecurities despite being an adult but looking like a child and behaves like a child sometimes too. She looked like a cute angry small animal, but voicing that opinion of his will surely earned him a slap.

"Ahaha, no, it's alright…I also have work interview to go to" Ryan said.

"…You changed your profession?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"Yeah…I got fired last night" Ryan embarrassingly admitted.

"Pfftt! Hahahahahahahaha!" Theresa suddenly laughed.

"D-D-Did you just laughed at me?!" Ryan stuttered in disbelieve.

"I sure did!" Theresa said then stuck her tongue out.

"I'll have you know because of that I won't be able to ate for the rest of my life if I didn't find work soon!" Ryan said with his left eye starting to twitched.

"Come over at the dormitory tonight if you don't, we'll feed you" Theresa said while grinning.

Ryan's brain stopped working for a split second…Did Theresa really invited him to Saint Freya Girls dormitory at night? Ryan was sure she didn't think this through, not at all. He's a guy, with a magnum hand cannon between his legs and raging teenage hormones for the ammunition. Sure, he's not someone who act on lust but anything could happen…Oh wait, real life wasn't some goddamn ecchi anime where sexual things happened every day, he'll be fine but he still had to ask.

"Huh, you invited a man to a girl's dormitory at night. You're okay with that?" Ryan asked Theresa uncertainly.

"Well, Victoria did put you in good word" Theresa said while smiling innocently.

Ryan cringed because Theresa played the trust card with him, Victoria thought that he's a good man who wouldn't do something rash to the girls. If he destroyed that trust, there goes his life on the academy and his reputation among the female students. But what choice do he have? Went to the apartment next to him then kneeled down in front of Kallen and Sakura to beg for food? Hey, that's somehow a better alternative.

"Plus, it's Mei who usually cooked dinner" Theresa said casually.

Fucking sold! His sense of reasoning, soul and morale were sold to the devil! Mei Raiden's homemade cooking? Count him in! He heard about how Mei's cooking from Kiana who blabbed about it on class, based on the description it seems that it tasted heavenly. Since then, he's always wanted to taste it but damn they were an acquaintance at best and strangers at worst! Ryan supposed that both of them only knew each other by name, they haven't interacted that much other than the fight two days ago.

He started to daydream about how will Mei's cooking taste in his own mouth, damn he really wanted to taste it now. The same Mei who even the most stoic boy in class even remarked that she's a girlfriend material if he ever interested in dating on the first place, she's the school idol and a top student…Ninety percent of The Vikings were awed and terrified at her. If Ryan did taste the girl's cooking, the bragging rights among The Vikings will fall to him too. Two birds with one bullet, a piercing shot.

"…You know what, I'm in" Ryan said with monotone voice.

"Okay then, I'll make sure to let her knows. See you then!" Theresa said as she left.

Theresa took off from there and Ryan left with no other appointment except meeting with Kallen on the school gate, better ready himself because he's going to an interview with zero working experience in a restaurant. Kallen was waiting for Ryan beneath a Sakura tree near the main gate of the academy, she still dressed in her Saint Freya Academy girls' uniform. Yeah, she named the outfit Sundenjager, it's a little revealing dress but she managed that by changing some part of the outfit after she got called by Theresa for wearing improper outfit on school grounds. So Kallen traded the blouse with white dress shirt and worn black skirt to cover the revealing parts of her outfit for school activity, since now there were boys in the academy. On mission though, she got to wear her original outfit with no problem.

She checked her phone to pass the time, because the operation took at least an hour according to Ryan. She was browsing the news site when her train of thought stopped and started thinking on something that she was curious about, how good were Ryan going to be from now on that he got a replacement for his right arm? Kallen admitted that the man was more than decent because he able to survived six different attacks from First Year Valkyrie Top Guns, even he managed to blocked her high kick with the remains of his right arm. Based on what she overheard apparently, he survived Southern Japan Honkai Invasion as a militia…That wasn't something everyone can do.

But she had to put that thought on hold, maybe she will get the chance to see it directly in the future…Ryan said they were friends, right? That certainly should allow her some pass to glimpse at his true skills, anyway the said man was currently walked toward her and she immediately noticed the black mechanical arm attached on his right arm. It almost looked like a bona-fide real arm, with the exception of its metallic shine.

"Hey Kallen" Ryan greeted her casually.

"Hey, you look quite good! How is the arm?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"I liked it. Though, I have to sent monthly data input to the medical wing. This thing recorded every movement I made using the right hand" Ryan said as he stopped in front of Kallen.

"…Was that the payment?" Kallen made a guess.

"Supposedly. Oh well, I got nothing to hide anyway so it fine…Anyway, shall we go?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Sure, follow me" Kallen said as she mentioned Ryan to follow her.

Both Kallen and Ryan started walking toward their destination, along the way Ryan contemplated on how will he solved his problem regarding dinner. Should he go with Theresa or did he beg to Kallen? Oh wait, Theresa 'would make sure to' let Mei know that he would be there…His fate was sealed for tonight huh. It'll be rude to turn down such generous invitation, he couldn't exactly complained either with his financial situation.

"So what kind of restaurant is it?" Ryan tried to start a conversation.

"Hmm, it's your kind of average restaurant located two blocks away from school. Despite that though, it produced the best kind of food for cheap price. That's what make the most frequent customers being students, including the one's from our academy" Kallen explained to him.

The cold truth about being a student abroad was the living cost itself, so when there's cheap meals available it instantly became most sought items among students and Saint Freya students were no exception.

"Is that so, that includes you?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Sakura and I, sometimes with Kiana, Mei or Bronya goes there whenever we felt like eating outside" Kallen said.

"Ho, and the manager is your good friend?" Ryan asked again.

"Yeah, we met when I'm on second year of junior high school. It just happened when one day I'm staying on the restaurant until closing time, we talked for a bit and we became friends from that day on…Oh look, we're here already" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Oh my" Ryan muttered.

Ryan never thought that the cafe was THAT close to Saint Freya Academy, it was less than five minutes' walk! The café named Celestial Clarity were in front of Kallen and Ryan, it's a marine blue painted two-story building that were currently filled with quite the number of customers. Kallen looked around a bit and she found the manager was behind the cashier desk, Kallen motioned Ryan to follow her and he just nodded. Okay, Ryan had survived an entire invasion, fought off Honkai beasts ten times his size, got gunned down hundred times by Anti-Entropy or rogue soldiers and actually made it alive for two years in warzone with a missing arm.

But he couldn't help himself to felt nervous regarding this interview, he didn't show it in front of Kallen by putting on brave front though. Well, it's do or die, his very own future was at stake here so he better went all out like him in the past when the invasion struck his home. Both Kallen and Ryan entered the café, they were immediately greeted by a blonde waitress with dark red eyes. She wore white dress shirt, pink waitress apron, black skirt and black stockings. Overall, she looked cute even on Ryan's eyes who got zero clue regarding fashion.

"Welcome to Celestial Clarity! Oh my, it's Kallen!" The waitress said.

"Hey Clair, you're quite early" Kallen greeted her.

"I need to cover Mana's shift, she's visiting her grandma on the outskirt. You're alone today?" Clair asked Kallen.

Just as Clair said that, her eyes fell upon Ryan who just went through the entrance of the café. His crimson eyes then met with Clair's dark red eyes and she immediately analyzed him from head to toe, in unreal speed. After she was done looking at Ryan, she looked at Kallen who tilted her head to the left a bit in confusion. Without any kinds of warning, Clair took Kallen's hand and dragged her a bit to the side.

"Kallen! Who is that hot guy!?" Clair asked Kallen while shout-whispering.

"He's a friend from school?" Kallen answered casually.

"I thought Saint Freya is supposed to be an all girl's school?!" Clair further asked Kallen.

"Yeah, two weeks ago the system got changed so here we are" Kallen said to Clair.

Ryan only had his right eyebrow rose in confusion, then he noticed something regarding this café. Ninety percent of the customers were all women, from junior high school girls to office ladies were all sprawled out inside the restaurant…He wanted to run, knowing his luck with girls this weren't going to go in the right direction. He already had it bad with Kallen and Sakura yesterday, he didn't want to make a public display of it today!

His sense of reasoning though argued that he definitely need money to continue on living and Kallen's effort would be a waste if he just gave up like that, he needed to survive. Ryan walked in and approached Kallen and Clair, both still involved in a heated discussion regarding something.

"Hey, uh, I wanted to see the manager" Ryan said to Clair.

"O-Oh is that so, she's right over here. Please follow me" Clair said to Ryan.

The three then approached the cashier desk, a young woman with light green hair could be seen seated behind the desk with bored face until she saw Kallen and Ryan approached her.

"Kallen, nice to see that…" The lady then went quiet.

"Um, Faina?" Kallen asked her.

"This is the first time I saw you hanging around a boy, Kallen! Who is he? Your boyfriend!?" Faina said in excited tone.

The word slammed both Kallen and Ryan like a brick wall, both with different reasons. Kallen just realized that she never got along with boys that much, then again there were not that many guys were involved in her life. That's why when she went here with Ryan, people tended to misunderstand about her relationship with him.

Ryan never expected to heard that Kallen's friend to mentioned this, Kallen never brought a boy here? So, he's the first guy that she ever brought in front of her friend since junior high school…That said a lot of things. Kallen smiled awkwardly with Ryan furrowed his eyebrows, they were denying that of course.

"W-We aren't dating" Kallen said.

"We're just friends" Ryan said.

"Really? That's a shame! You both would make quite the pair…Oh well, the future is still unknown so let's see. So, any reason why you go straight to me instead ordering a menu, Kallen?" Faina asked Kallen.

"I remembered that you needed a guy for an employee but none have passed your criteria selection am I right? Ryan here currently have a difficult financial situation, he needs a work as soon as possible…I wonder if you could hire him?" Kallen asked Faina.

Faina gasped in surprise, Kallen actually found someone that she could hire? The timing couldn't be anymore perfect as Faina almost gave up the thought on finding a male employer that wanted to work in her restaurant and fit her criteria. She looked at Ryan, from his spiky green hair all the way to the shoes on his feet. So far so good, Faina decided to at least talk to him first.

"Hmm…Kallen, I love you!" Faina suddenly said.

"Eh? Sure, me too" Kallen responded while smiling.

"Follow me you both, let's continue this in a more private place" Faina said as she started walking.

The three of them entered through the back into the staff room, then they entered the manager office where Faina told Ryan and Kallen to sit in the two chairs provided in front of the manager desk. Faina then sat on the manager's chair, she put on her best serious face though her face soft features didn't make her looked serious at all

"What Kallen said was true, Ryan. I'm in need for a male employee, doesn't mean that I don't have one as I had one in the kitchen…I need a male waiter" Faina begun her interview.

"Okay, and I'm in dire need of a job. Am I qualified for that?" Ryan asked curiously.

"I would need to ask you several things since you didn't bring any proposal…How good you are with remembering things?" Faina asked Ryan.

"Quite good, I don't have any trouble with remembering the menu or an order" Ryan said.

It wasn't far-fetched, Kallen suppose Ryan would need to memorized a lot of things as he was the leader of The Vikings. As a leader, how effective his unit performed will depend on his leadership so that meant Ryan had to learn a lot of things. If he had struggle in memorizing something then it would be quite the hardship he would face in the future, but it seemed he did just fine so far.

"Any work experiences?" Faina asked Ryan.

"Web development, for few months" Ryan answered honestly.

"I see…How swift could you work?" Faina asked Ryan again.

"I possessed good agility and the stamina needed in case of rush hour" Ryan confidently said.

Again, being the leader of The Vikings would not only require sharp mind but he also needed to possess good endurance and fluid movements. Ryan definitely looked fit if that photo shown few days ago was any indication, he didn't seem out of breath during their fight before, he's quite agile and possessed nimble fingers that played a huge role with his nickname. Flying with that back mounted jet thrusters also must require some degree of flexibility and reflex, Kallen believed that could served him well on rush hours.

"I'll be honest and ask…Any crime records?" Faina asked curiously.

"Just some speeding tickets, two times" Ryan answered casually.

At this, Kallen started to sweat as she didn't expect for Ryan to answered all of Faina's question honestly. Furthermore, two speeding tickets? Ryan owned a vehicle and a license? She didn't know that, she felt the experience whenever you discovered something new about your friend that you weren't aware of.

"Any other particular skill set you possess?" Faina asked Ryan, her eyes never failed to meet his.

"Anti-personnel training, close quarter combat training, marksmanship, a bit of swordsmanship, Explosive Ordnance Disposal training, aerial acrobatics, medical first aid, self-taught piloting and a bit of self-taught mechanical engineering" Ryan listed off all of his known skills.

Kallen subtly facepalmed at this, there was no way those were the skillset that Faina looked when she searched for a male waiter. How would the skills usually used in conflict and war could be implemented on restaurant business? At this rate, Ryan would fit in to be the security posted in front of the restaurant instead becoming a handsome waiter.

"…Okay…That's surprising. How desperate are you in getting this job?" Faina kept on interviewing Ryan.

"Bad enough that I'd sold my soul to a devil for a year's supply of living necessity if you turned me down right here right now" Ryan said with absolute certainty.

Kallen gave up as she facepalmed, sighed and put her head on the desk because this interview proven to be a disaster. Why did even Ryan joke regarding his seriousness? Was he taking this seriously? Seeing him though, Kallen knew Ryan was serious but the answer he gave in the end was quite random. Kallen thought that this was all over already, Faina would never accept someone like him for a waiter. She guessed Ryan would have to look for another job, perhaps in VIP protection service?

"You passed!" Faina said while giving a thumb's up.

"Wait, what the fuck?!" Kallen exclaimed.

Kallen immediately clamped her mouth with her own two hands alongside blush decorated her cheeks when she realized she was surprised and cursed out loud, Ryan was definitely surprised by that as he could be seen jerked a bit when he heard what Kallen said. This didn't make any sense for Kallen, Faina accepted him? In what part that became the reason for Faina to accepted him as a waiter?!

"He really fits in with my criteria, Kallen! You bring the right guy, really!" Faina said.

Faina somehow wasn't affected with the fact Kallen cursed out loud and Kallen herself was lost, this was definitely not what she expected. Kallen looked at Ryan who were still looking at her with curious and intrigued face. It was then the weight of reality finally settled in and Kallen felt like hiding herself from Ryan, she actually went unladylike and cursed out loud beside a guy.

Ryan though, he never thoughted that Kallen was the girl that could cursed aloud either. All this time he thought that Kallen gave off this knightly aura, the way she acted and spoke always had the hint of kindness on it. Kallen never heard to said very mean things, guess that was off the mark as proven just few seconds ago. Ryan took a mental note to not surprise Kallen if they're on public areas in the future.

"I need you to put on these clothes and prepare yourself for a test drive, do this right and I'll hire you immediately" Faina said with clothes that seemed to magically appeared on her hands.

"Sure?" Ryan took the clothes hesitantly.

Taking the clothes with him, Ryan swiftly made his way toward the staff dressing room in order to changed into the work uniform. He looked at the uniform on his hands and he smiled a bit, at least he was able to dressed up nicely for part-time work…Back to the two ladies, Faina looked at Kallen who in turn also turned her head toward her.

"So…How come a special force soldier suddenly come to me and asked for a job?" Faina asked Kallen.

"Long story short, he's still in training…Let's just say Schicksal got custody of him but the job didn't exactly pay him, can't say much other than that, sorry" Kallen said, it was a secret project after all.

"Hah, I expected you to say that…He's a handsome guy though, how come you befriend someone like him?" Faina curiously asked Kallen.

"He's my classmate who became my neighbor a week ago" Kallen simply said.

"He's your friend, classmate and neighbor?! Kallen…You don't know how lucky you are, being able to meet most of the time! I wouldn't be surprised if he got a girlfriend!" Faina said to Kallen giddily.

"Is that so? I haven't seen him with another girl though…That's strange" Kallen commented.

"That guy is single? Unbelievable!" Faina also commented.

Ryan was done changed his clothes into the ones that Faina told him to changed into, he came out from the dressing room and re-entered the manager's office. Ryan wore white dress shirt with black bowtie, black long pants and black shoes. The two girls looked at him for quite a bit before Faina suddenly went up, grabbed his hand, seated him on her chair and then took something from the nearby desk.

She grabbed a can of hair gel, applied it on her hands and then proceed to tame the emerald spiky hair that Ryan got. The said man wanted to say something but he figured to let Faina do what she thought the best first, he's blind when it comes to fashion (so was the writer of this story, fuck me). Faina slicked back his hair neatly, she then grabbed something from her apron pocket and put it on Ryan's face. It's non-prescription rectangular black glasses, she then took a mirror and showed her work to Ryan.

"What do you think?" Faina asked Ryan.

Ryan looked into the mirror and stunned on what he saw, what stared back at him was like a completely different person. His slicked back hair was a radical change compared to his usual hairstyle, his fierce crimson eyes didn't change a bit but the glasses on his face managed to turned the impression from intimidating into just slightly intimidating.

"…You sure this is alright? I looked intimidating! Wouldn't this scare away customers?" Ryan asked unsurely.

"All you need to do, is to act like a butler now…Just smile, be polite and believe me, the customers would be pleased" Faina tried to assure Ryan.

"Really? Wait a sec, this café is a cosplay café?" Ryan asked Faina.

"Not quite, but you're a special case! Now memorize the menu, then you're going out there" Faina said while smiling.

Seeing his new boss had a faith in him, Ryan turned his way toward Kallen who just put on a thumbs up for him. Great, these two ladies were certain that Ryan would kill it out there. Might as well do it, the three of them then returned to the dining area. When Ryan went out of the manager's office he was immediately put on the spotlight, most of the ladies looked at him with various meaningful gazes.

"I'm rarely nervous, but this was on another level" Ryan gulped at his monologue.

Faina grabbed a menu before giving Ryan a crash course regarding it, it seems he wasn't exaggerating when he said that he's quite good in remembering things because it didn't take long for Ryan to understand the menu set. He was then given a notepad and a pen before Faina pointed him to stand by near the door, he did just that and fate was in a roll today as the next customer came in half a minute later.

They were four young ladies from a public high school near Saint Freya, they wore black and white sailor uniform as they entered the restaurant while chatting among themselves. The four of them stopped dead when they saw Ryan approached them, he put on his best polite smile alongside a warm gaze toward the girls. Unknown to them, their cheeks exploded in red color and two of them was stuttering nonsenses.

"Welcome to Celestial Clarity, ladies. Table for four?" Ryan asked in deep husky voice.

"Y-Y-Yes, please" One of them managed to answered Ryan.

"Then please follow me, I will guide you to your table" Ryan said as he led them to an empty table.

After seating the four ladies on an empty table, Ryan handed them the menu then he waited for the girls to choose their meals and drinks. Apparently, they were regulars there and they immediately stated their orders, Ryan took quick note then told them to be patient until their orders were ready to be served. Ryan gave the order to one of the chefs then he walked back toward Kallen and Faina.

"What did I tell you? You're doing great!" Faina said.

"Is that so, I'm not used to this" Ryan said to Faina.

"You'll get used to it soon, Ryan" Faina said to Ryan.

"I hoped so. Kallen, why don't you sit and enjoy yourself a bit…Seems this test drive would be quite a while" Ryan suggested to Kallen.

"Alright then, do your best!" Kallen said while smiling.

"Thanks!" Ryan simply replied before he went back to work.

.

"You're doing fine for a newcomer, Ryan. Here's today's pay, for working overtime where you supposed only to test the waters. Heard from Kallen that your wallet is a bit tight for this week, hope this could help you a bit" Faina said.

Faina reached for her pocket and produced electronic currency voucher filled with credits, Ryan took it with questioning eyes but figured out that he shouldn't ask too much question and accepted the money with gratitude instead. Ryan subtly looked at the number written on it was ten thousand credits…He worked for a day and received this much pay?!

"You helped me a lot, Ms. Faina" Ryan said.

"It's nothing. I hoped you like to continue working here then?" Faina asked Ryan.

"Well, it was quite fun and a change in atmosphere…Sure, I'd like to continue" Ryan said while smiling.

"Then from now on you'll be working here, I'll send the details to you shortly. Welcome to Celestial Clarity, Ryan. Glad to have you on board" Faina said.

"My pleasure" Ryan said.

Both then shook hands as Kallen smiled while she watched the exchange nearby, she's glad that she able to helped him solved his financial problems. Ryan approached Kallen with a smile on his face, he really owed the girl big time.

"I really owe you for this, Kallen" Ryan said to Kallen.

"And I said it before, you could repay me later" Kallen said.

"I intend to do just that…You're going home?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Yes, it's quite late already. Sakura said she already made dinner, you're coming home too?" Kallen asked Ryan back.

Now Ryan cringed a bit because he remembered what Theresa told him, Mei's cooking already waited on Saint Freya's dormitory. He couldn't let this chance go, this might be the only time where he could taste that rumored heavenly taste food. Well Ryan made up his mind in the end, he would follow his desire.

"Sorry, I still have some appointment after this" Ryan said to Kallen.

"I see…Then, I'll be going first" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Yeah, be careful on your way home alright?" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Will do~" Kallen said as she exited the restaurant.

Bidding goodbye to Faina after Ryan sorted his belongings and uniform, Ryan went back to school and saw that the security unit was seen patrolling the school perimeter…Ryan facepalmed at the stupidity of his assumption that he could simply went inside the girl's dormitory, at this rate he'll be gunned down before he able to utter a single word of excuses if he got caught. He was going to head home when an unknown number called his phone, he immediately answered the call.

"Hello?" Ryan answered the phone call.

"Where are you Ryan? Food's getting cold here" It was Theresa, thank god.

"Yeah, in front gate of the academy…How the hell am I suppose to get inside with the security on patrol?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"The key to avoid them is by entering through the eastern gate, the dormitory was on the west side so security was a bit heavy over there. Use the back entrance then head toward the fourth floor, all you need to do left is to knock on room 409" Theresa instructed him.

"Okay, easier said than done! You wanted me to play stealth infiltration at this hour? I do play Metal Gear Solid, though this was all your plan! Can't you do anything!?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"I have to keep up with my image, Ryan. Rest assured, I'll be able to pull some strings if you got captured but please try to remain unnoticed…Also, I remember you were quite good in evading patrols during-"

Finger swiftly pressed on the hang up icon on the smartphone, Ryan clicked his tongue at the thought that his wish would require him to work his ass off a bit. He opened the school website, memorized the school ground's layout then steeled himself for a ridiculous infiltration just to eat a delicious dinner. Ryan sure he would get involved even on more ridiculous things in the future, he could feel it in his bones.

"What a man wouldn't do for his desire, huh" Ryan said to himself.

With it, he went and climbed the eastern gate before rushing from cover to cover. After few quick dives for cover, several almost-got-caught situations and crawling along the bushes, Ryan managed to reached room 409 in fifteen minutes. He swore to never did this again in the future, he had enough with just this one time. Ryan knocked on the door and it was opened few seconds later by Theresa dressed in casual outfit.

"Hey there, you finally arrived!" Theresa said.

"Hope you guys didn't start dinner yet?" Ryan asked in tired tone.

"Dinner? Mei hasn't even cooked yet" Theresa said casually.

Ryan was baffled to say the least, Theresa straight up lied to his face? God really damned him as he stood in front of Saint Freya girl's dormitory room 409 with disbelieve written on his face. He was told that the food was getting cold so he better head there as soon as possible, but that was all a ploy to get him arrived quickly to this specific room in the dorm? The truth was the food wasn't ready yet, why? Ryan could clearly saw Mei who wore short pants and yellow t-shirt relaxing in the living room before she jumped in surprise when she saw him on the front door.

"R-R-Ryan-kun? W-What are you doing here?!" Mei asked Ryan while stuttering.

"Um…Principal Theresa told me to come here, didn't she tell you?" Ryan asked Mei.

"She said nothing about it!" Mei said to Ryan.

"You lied!?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"Hey, I did say the food's getting cold. What I meant was the cookies I heated up half an hour ago, I never said anything about Mei's cooking" Theresa said innocently.

Apparently, Theresa also didn't inform Mei regarding his visit…Ryan looked at Theresa who only averted her eyes to the right with her tongue stuck out, Ryan felt his ire rose slowly as a tick mark showed up on his forehead. Who would've thought that this old loli was a forgetful person and quite a slick woman too!?

"Hmm? Hey, whose birthday is today? Why would a hot stud suddenly appear out of nowhere? I haven't set the pole for the pole dancing session!"

That was enough to stopped Ryan from firing hails of complaint toward Theresa in favor of being surprised and slightly embarrassed, he looked to the right and found Himeko wearing a tight blue pajama with light orange jacket on her shoulder. Ryan shouldn't had been surprised that it would be Himeko, who else would be brave enough to said such things openly? His eyes suddenly moved on its own, in favor of seeing the view that the two top buttons of the pajama's opened gave to him.

"Wow" Ryan said unconsciously.

"Be a good boy and maybe I'll let you touch it" Himeko said while winking.

"…Hmm, what a tempting offer. I would like to know the terms and conditions that you described as 'good boy' please" Ryan said while grinning and wiggling his eyebrows twice.

Himeko blushed a bit when he said that, that was a different reaction than she expected! The reaction he shown her when the first time they met alone was a bit different, he indeed looked at her breast but he then politely backed off by smiling and apologizing. This time, he boldly insinuated that he did had a desire to touched it? Well Himeko certainly didn't expect that development.

Ryan though, he purposely replied differently to Himeko's teasing compared to what he did few days ago. He wanted to know how would Himeko responded if he counter-attacked, because he saw that she wasn't serious when the first time this happened. This time though, he could saw her blushing a bit at his bold words…He felt himself smiled a bit, oh this was definitely the right path.

"Okay, get inside before the other students find out about this! It'll be quite a mess to explain!" Theresa said.

Theresa then grabbed Ryan's left hand and with surprising strength for a loli before she dragged him inside the room, Himeko silently followed them and after she made sure no one saw them she then closed the door.

"You surprisingly willing to let me break the law of your own school" Ryan said to Theresa.

"Not the first time, I've also did something much worse" Theresa said.

"Such as?" Ryan asked curiously.

"Let's just say I've stolen a rare HOMU figurine even though a fifteen years old girl wanted it so bad, I casually bought it ahead of her and walked home triumphantly…Surprisingly though, she smiled brightly at me" Theresa retold her experience.

Ryan suddenly went chuckling uncontrollably before he roared in full on laughter, Theresa only looked at him in confusion until Mei started giggled too followed by Himeko. The three of them laughed because they probably knew what was that fifteen years old girl thought when she saw Theresa bought that HOMU figurine, they all had the same idea.

"What's so funny?" Theresa asked the three of them.

"Ahahaha! Oh, nothing, nothing!" Ryan said while struggling to stop himself.

"The three of you laughing together is definitely not nothing! Oh well…Mei, Ryan's here to join us on dinner because I invited him. You don't mind, do you?" Theresa asked Mei.

"Oh, is that so. I have no problem with it, you could join us…Alright then, I'll be sure to whip up something nice quick! Ryan-kun, how about you get Bronya to stand by on the living room? She had been inside her room since coming back from school" Mei said as she headed into the kitchen.

"Alright, which one is her room?" Ryan asked, there were two doors in front of him.

"Take the left one" Mei instructed him as she put on a pink apron.

Himeko settled in nicely on the living room sofa alongside Theresa as they started talking about something which Ryan didn't understand, so he made his way toward Bronya's room. He knocked twice while calling Bronya's name but the occupant didn't respond, Ryan twisted the doorknob and it moved and also opened the door that gave him a dark room with single light source.

That light source came from a computer on the other side of the room, currently lit up with someone possessed twin drills for hairstyle in front of it. Ryan walked in without permission and saw that Bronya was too focused on her games to noticed him, he took a peek at what was she playing on her PC.

Battle Royale game was the answer as currently, Bronya's character was crouching with M16B-PAR on her hands alongside one of her teammates. Ryan took a peek on the upper left corner of the screen and saw that there's only eight people left in this team match and Bronya's team still had four people with full health on it…She's definitely a pro on this game.

Ryan himself was a gamer back before the invasion hit, he owned a gaming PC and console so he would play quite a bit whenever he got the chance to. Luckily his grade was quite good so his mother let him off the hook as a reward for studying hard, he's not a complete shut in though as he often played outside as well on sports.

Seeing Bronya played the game brought some sense of nostalgia within him, a particular cold day during a storm where he couldn't get out of the house resulted with him had to sufficed with his online games. Aurora, his mother, who were free that day watched him play with two mugs of hot chocolate. She commented that he had a fast reflex when Ryan's character got ambushed in close quarter and he managed to escape albeit with critical health, she commented that he's a good tactician when he managed to flanked his ambusher and swiftly eliminated them and she also commended him and ruffled his hair when he won the match without losing a single teammate.

It was a simple memory but it really tugged his heartstrings, Ryan felt his eyes went moist and he had to quickly rubbed his eyes with his left hand to prevented his tears from spilling out. He missed his mother, he missed the tender love she showered him every day, he missed her cooking, he missed her asking how was his day whenever he went back from school, he missed her encouraging him whenever he's in a competition or in a dilemma, he missed how she lectured him whenever he did something wrong, he missed how she just sat on the living room after dinner to spend time with him, he missed her tender voice and he missed her bright smile.

Seeing her bleeding that day broke him, both his mind and heart. He didn't have that much recollection regarding his father so his mother was the only one he's truly connected to, so he's devastated when he held her close as she assured him that she would be okay. Aurora say she was proud to had him as her son and she wished she could watch him grow up to be the fine man she knew he would be, she wished him to be happy in case she could no longer held him close in the future.

He was taken away by a retreating army unit, forced to abandoned his own mother on the frontline. He roared as he struggled against the soldiers that held him down, with tears spilled from his eyes. One of the soldiers assured him that she would be alright as the medic team already handled her but he wasn't going to buy that bullshit, he had to see her himself or he won't believe a damn thing that soldier said. That soldier later known as Victor, who Ryan called Vic throughout that clusterfuck of invasion…Ryan joined the militia to help the defense of the region, he charged at Honkai beast with relentless fury as a payback for what they did to his mother and put a stop to the invasion so no other kids had to go through of what he had to.

Ryan eventually managed to get back into the spot where he and his mother met for the last time, he saw no one there and not even corpses were seen on the site. It took him a year to reached the particular spot deep inside Honkai controlled territory, the red zone. He wanted to search the evidence or clues that could indicated his mother condition or whereabouts. He already lost his right hand, his soul had been baptized by the flames of battle and his mind was fortified against the most horrendous sight that the world had to offer. He even somehow turned into a mutant but he kept it hidden, he didn't want any unnecessary attention…for the time being.

His ever-faithful friend, Gin Yamato was with him at the time after being rescued by Ryan personally six months ago. When they reached the spot that Ryan told Gin many times over, Gin was able to imagined the chaos that engulfed the area as none of the building there left unscathed. They supposed to be in downtown, but there was no indication of such things on the wasteland they were on. Ryan went through every little piece of things on the ground and found a tossed away medical bag alongside several communication equipment, that's where he found a symbol and a name.

Schicksal, alongside its logo caught his attention. He knew he saw the symbol somewhere before all of this, his mother even had a cloth that had similar logo on the breast pocket. One way or another, he figured out that Schicksal got something to do with his mother. Her disappearance and lack of any suitable Intel on her location or the details of her death if she's indeed passed away eluded Ryan, no one knew about it or they hid it specifically from him. For now, the story he told everyone was that his mother was dying the last time he saw her.

Either way, he knew that the ticket for the truth was to get inside Schicksal itself. That's why he caused ruckus with his newfound power deep inside Honkai territory, that's how he met with Schicksal and UNAF vanguards and that's how he was brought in and managed to struck a deal with the higher ups. He would join this new experimental program for a combat unit and in turn, he had to kept his power a secret and provide them data for research.

Ryan was successful in infiltrating Schicksal and now, his journey to get the answer he needed begins. He wanted to find it as soon as possible, but Ryan knew the boundary between careful fast maneuver and careless charge. Even though he had to go fast, he knew he had to be careful. Right now, he still looked for a way to get inside Schicksal database. His student ID would only get him so far without a hacking skill, that would be quite difficult to procure…It's the motivation and sole purpose why would he get involved with Schicksal, the only secret that he only himself known. He had vowed to never fully trust Schicksal, unless they were proven to be innocent in his perspective.

Back to the present, Bronya was currently in the middle of firefight with the last enemy team. Her character called Alloy_Bronya fired her M16B-PAR in single fire mode, it's a firefight between cluster of houses. The attached 4x tactical scope on her rifle gave her a clear view of the enemy and she managed to struck a headshot at her opponent, but the remaining of them charged toward her position.

Bronya swiftly took out a flashbang, tossed it into the air, reloaded her M16B-PAR, switched it to fully automatic firing mode and charged outside to meet her foes just as the flashbang exploded. Her opponents blindly fired at her due to being blinded by flashbang, the unfazed Bronya quickly emptied her magazine against the two of the charging foes. She then went down on the ground while switched her firearms with M90 SMG and hip fired toward her last foe, her opponent downed on the ground and they win the match with Bronya scoring four kills on her own.

"Damn, you're good" Ryan commented.

Bronya jumped a bit on her seat and looked at Ryan who was smiling at her victory screen, she was shocked to be honest to saw him inside her room. Bronya then looked around to saw that it's already night, she then turned her head for a bit to close the game then she looked back toward Ryan.

"…Why is Ryan in Bronya's room?" Bronya asked Ryan.

"Long story short, Mei told me to fetch you. She wants you to wait for dinner in the living room" Ryan said to Bronya.

"Bronya understood" Bronya only nodded her head.

Bronya made a shooing motion with her hands and Ryan only shrugged as he got out from her room, he headed to the kitchen and saw Mei getting busy preparing dinner. Mei swiftly chopped carrots, leeks and potatoes on the chopping board, stirred the content of the pot on the stove and checked the rice on the rice cooker. She handled so many things at once and she did it while humming a recently famous song, needless to say Ryan was impressed.

"You need help with anything?" Ryan asked Mei.

"Oh, Ryan-kun. If you don't mind, there are still few vegetables and several beef to be cut left. Please chop it" Mei said to Ryan without looking at him.

"Will do" Ryan said.

Ryan approached the cutting board, took the kitchen knife and the ingredients then started chopping it. Mei subtly glanced at Ryan who seemed to had no problem in slicing the vegetables and meat in swift clean cut, he's fast too. That's when she noticed one thing, he had a right hand, a black metallic hand that held the knife.

"Ryan-kun, you have a metal arm!" Mei said in surprised tone.

"Huh? Oh yeah, just got it today. It's quite…handy" Ryan said while grinning.

"Fufufufu, it's good to see that you'll be able to perform like you used to" Mei giggled then said.

"I admit that I am" Ryan said.

"You're quite good in cutting them too" Mei commented on the result of Ryan's work.

"You think so?" Ryan asked unsurely.

"I did, you cut it nice and neat" Mei praised his result.

"Hehe, thanks" Ryan said to Mei.

Mei stirred the content of the pot after she inserted the ingredients to it, Ryan went to set the dinning table. When he returned to asked Mei on what else should he do, he saw Bronya opened the fridge and took a carton of milk from it. She was about to drank it when she saw Ryan stared at her, she turned her head toward him and she stared back with an emotionless face. Bronya could tell what was Ryan thinking inside his head when she saw that intrigued yet amused face of his.

"Bronya wants to grow faster" Bronya simply said.

"O-Oh, yes, good luck in that" Ryan said then he went to Mei.

"Ryan-kun, I forgot to ask. Is there any food you allergic or didn't like?" Mei asked him.

"Not as far I remember" Ryan answered Mei.

"In that case, you should be fine. Dinner would be ready soon" Mei said to Ryan.

"Alright" Ryan nodded his head.

Ryan seated himself on the dining table and opened his phone toward the notes that Victoria handed to him yesterday, its about the tactics they would learn next week called 'Saturation and Maneuver'. This was basically cover fire and moving on the battlefield, it had that simple purpose but pulling it off would require intense coordination and tactical thinking. Ryan was obligated to learn this maneuver by Victoria so he at least had a head start during practice, he's their commander after all.

But compared to taking down a Honkai beast, this was load easier to execute. Vikings was tested directly to take down Chariot and Emperor Class Honkai beast two weeks ago, needless to say most of them failed directly two minutes into the fight. The one who remained alongside Ryan himself, came up with a bold plan to took the beast down. They distracted the Chariot beast they fought with Han and Igor climbed to its back, set planted explosives on the carapace gaps between the limbs and then blown it. They then climbed aboard it, hack and slashed it until they spotted the core then emptied their ammo at it.

The beast was a hard-light hologram but they were simulated to be as real as the real thing, it didn't change the fact that their attacks felt real and it hurt as hell. The deadliest was The Emperor class, none of The Vikings managed to took it down even as a simulated hard-light hologram. Ryan remembered that the attack failed due to lack of coordination and the insufficient weaponry they used. None of the Vikings at the time carried heavy weapons, it's no wonder they failed to do any meaningful damage.

Viking Training Regiment held after school on Monday to Thursday, the rest of the week was their resting time. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were the practical days for them and usually the part where the entire unit either get their asses kicked hard or they survived with PTSD embedded on their minds. Thursday was the part where they learned theories, general combat knowledge, tactics, strategy and weapon handling. Busy weekdays for sure, but thanks to that the massage places around Saint Freya were crowded by them. Business was booming and the owner of the massage places couldn't be any happier.

"Dinner's ready!" Mei said.

Not long after that, the table was crowded by everyone and they started digging on their dinner shortly. Ryan was right regarding his assumption and he proved Kiana's statement to be correct, this was delicious! He wouldn't mind eating Mei's cooking from now on, but declaring that to Mei was the same as a marriage proposal so he better kept silent for now.

"How is it?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"…One of the best meals I ever tasted!" Ryan simply said.

"My, thank you Ryan!" Mei said while smiling.

"You ate this everyday Bronya? You're quite lucky!" Ryan said to Bronya.

"Bronya thought so too" Bronya said.

"So how about it? Thinking on having dinner here from now on? Mei's homemade cooking is worth dying for, don't you think?" Theresa asked Ryan with smug smile attached on her face.

It's true that every time Ryan wanted to have Mei's dinner dish then he would have to infiltrate the academy, today he managed to passed from getting caught but what about the next time or even the next time after that? The risk was quite huge but so does the reward, but would he be willing to bet his own life and reputation on the line?

"…I'll think about it…Tonight has been a great lesson for me" Ryan said uneasily.

That lesson would be 'Double check every Intel you have, including the source', Ryan decided to get Mei's and Bronya's phone number after dinner. He won't want to get fooled like this in the future. Plus, he'll be able to befriends the two girls with this first step.

.

Dinning with them proven to be quite fun after all, Ryan went back to his apartment with smile on his face despite the heavy rain pouring down on Soukai. He got a metallic prosthetic hand, a new job, received some money to survive this week and ate quite the appetizing dinner. What a good day, might as well completed it with a good night rest. Ryan decided that he did enough studying for the day and his gun was still in good shape. That means he could relax himself with TV, comfy couch and a mug of tea or he could get intimate with his PC and some new games on the side.

All of that possibilities were thrown out of the window though as soon he reached his apartment front door, he saw someone standing beside it with arms folded. The person had big build, intimidating face, short dark red hair in crewcut style and aqua blue eyes. He wore a brown trench coat, with green military uniform underneath it while complimented with black combat boots. Ryan knew this guy, but actually seeing him here was quite the shock for him.

"Vic?" Ryan asked the man.

The man turned then looked at him and smiled, he's known as Victor Ackerson. Long story short, he's like Ryan's guardian during that whole mess back on Southern Japan. They parted ways a year ago, when Ryan officially taken in by Schicksal. Victor had his own mission to accomplish so they parted ways, with Ryan went to Soukai while Victor headed for the fight on North Africa. All sorts of question popped on Ryan's mind and none of them made sense, guess he just had to make the guy himself said it.

"What are you doing here? How do you know where I live?" Ryan asked Victor.

"Whoa slow down kid, did my appearance here shocked you that much?" Victor asked with amused tone.

"Yes it is! You said you got reassigned to North Africa, then why are you here?" Ryan was confused.

"Which version you want to hear?" Victor simply asked.

"…Short one first, details later" Ryan said.

It had been a usual occurrence between the two, Victor would usually prepare two version of things he might tell Ryan. It would be either the long and detailed version or the short and need-to-know version, Victor usually preferred the short version since he would be less troubled in explaining something and that often did got Ryan frustrated when he need to hear the details quickly.

"Alright. In short, I got promoted into a squad leader on a special task force United Nations Armed Forces has. I did some digging on Africa for Intel and that leads me here…Now, I got some good news and bad news. Which one you want to hear first?" Victor asked again, smiling amusedly this time.

"…Hah…Good one's first" Ryan sighed then said.

"My squad stumbled upon an old abandoned Schicksal outpost, Far Eastern division on North Africa. If you want to ask how the fuck did that happened then your guess is as good as mine…We went in, swept the area for any kind of Intel we could use and we found something on the desk terminal. It's an analog file with Aurora Taurus embedded on the cover, that's your mother's name wasn't it?" Victor asked Ryan.

This was some good news to Ryan, finally something that had link toward his family. It may had been an analog file but it was still a piece of information that he could use to find clues, he would get to the bottom of the mystery of his past and uncover the truth.

"Yeah! What kind of file is it? I knew it, she was involved with Schicksal in some way" Ryan said.

"The file detailed her personnel data alongside her work records, your mother was declared AWOL by Schicksal around eleven years ago" Victor said.

"AWOL? The hell? Also, eleven years ago? That's it, my memories were blurry before age seven…There must be a connection with the files you mentioned!" Ryan said to Victor.

"I'll give it to you later…The bad news came after that, we searched the terminal and we found a search inquiry regarding a location in its history. Your name came up on it, with time stamp being two days ago" Victor told Ryan.

And that was some really bad news, you solved one problem and another could rose just to laughed and spitted on your face. Now, who would be curious enough to searched where was currently Ryan lived at? The said man himself didn't had that much list he could suspected on, most of his friends and acquaintances were dead back on Southern Japan. Two days ago would mean that Ryan was still stuck on the medical wing, it had the same timeline when Siegfried and Cecilia visited him. Was there a connection between that visit and the fact that someone was looking for his location? No, it wasn't likely, both Cecilia and Siegfried was the top fighters Schicksal had so his information would probably be available for someone with their status. Then who could it be?

"That base was supposed to be abandoned wasn't it? Did you know who inputted it?" Ryan asked Victor for clues.

"No, we didn't find any traces regarding who inputted the inquiry into the terminal. It was clean" Victor said then sighed.

"Not a thing? Not even camera records?" Ryan asked, a bit frustrated with the answer.

"…Actually, we indeed found something curious but so far we got no luck with it" Victor said.

"Can I look at it?" Ryan asked Victor.

Victor took out his phone, searched the content of the gallery before he shown Ryan a picture of a small round black device. Ryan took a closer look on the picture but he couldn't figured out what was the device was, maybe some kind of bug device? Regardless how he looked at it, Ryan still didn't know on what would the device functioned as. He shrugged as he handed the phone back toward Victor, he wasn't knowledgeable enough to figured it out.

"What's this?" Ryan asked Victor.

"A signal beacon, equipped with motion sensor camera too. Not sure who put it there but I figured it could be the same person who accessed the terminal…One thing that is clear, whoever this person is, they want to know your location…I'm not saying they are an enemy but they might not be an ally either, you need to stay sharp" Victor advised Ryan.

"Yeah…This all can't be a coincidence. Whoever put the beacon there they must also be the one who put my mother's file on the terminal desk" Ryan said as he reached for the keys on his pants pocket.

"What do you think it means?" Victor asked Ryan.

"Simple actually. It means they know who I am, who were my family and they possibly have the answer that I seek…It's all a message, to tell me that they'll be here" Ryan said with a firm tone.

Victor only nodded his head as Ryan unlocked his apartment door, he motioned Victor to went in and he did just that. Ryan was about to close the door when he stopped and he looked around, seeing no one in the vicinity he then proceeded squinted his eyes for a bit to the dark city scenery then closed his apartment door and locked it from inside. Two hundred meters away from his apartment, there was someone standing on top of a tall office building with a small binocular their left hand.

The person was a tall male with short spiky blond hair, he wore large blue cloak with half mask covered his bottom face and red glasses covered his eyes. He then looked at his digital binocular before he pressed a button beneath it, he looked at his phone that played the recording of the events that just happened. In there, Victor could be seen talking to Ryan…It wasn't long before Victor got inside and Ryan looked around before closing the door.

The said person played back the recording, he then pressed the pause button before Ryan closed the door. He then zoomed in on the video, straight toward Ryan's face to be precise. He enhanced the quality of the recording and then he saw it. Ryan was staring at him directly for split seconds, anyone could brush it off as mere coincidence but the said person knew better. He knew regarding Ryan's ability to saw Honkai energy transmission, that stare was also the proof that one way or another Ryan knew he was being watched on.

"Guess he's not that easy to fool" The person said.

He looked at the blade sheathed inside a dark blue sheath strapped on his back, it was a straight double edged metallic black longsword with red blade guard and black handle. That was the reason why Ryan could spot him, its all because the longsword was oozing with Honkai energy. Even though the sheath had a special property to contain the Honkai energy, it seemed it won't be enough in hiding it from Ryan Taurus's eyes.

Storing everything in his pocket, the person looked at Ryan's apartment one last time with a hint of amusement on his emerald green eyes hidden underneath the red tactical glasses. He then walked to the right before he dropped himself from the building into an alley between the office building bellow, he landed harshly but he was seen to not receive any injuries from it. He looked to the left and saw a shocked homeless person looking at him, he huffed in amusement before tossing him an electronic card that functioned as voucher filled with credits to the homeless person.

"Just keep quiet about this" He said as he walked away.

The homeless person only nodded his head with the card on his hands, the guy then suddenly started running toward Soukai's harbor area, somehow evading every pedestrian's and vehicle driver's vision. He had something to work on and it had to be fast, less he will be too late to do the right thing and missing this last chance would spell a certain doom in the future.

* * *

 **Weapons Trivia**

 **M90 Sub Machine Gun: Next generation SMG's based on the old version of P90, it has a bit longer overall body compared to P90 and possessed the same working mechanism except for its futuristic looking overall design. The difference was located on its grip and the magazine was filled with sixty 4.5mm bullets, it had good accuracy for continuous fire, manageable recoil even when fired one handed and quite light to be carried around. Special Operation Soldiers often employed this weapon due to its reliability, it performed well against human or Honkai based enemies. The main feature of the gun was that this gun actually could be folded, that way it capable on being hidden in lot of small spaces and also the reason why this gun was so popular among insurgents, rogues and criminals.**

* * *

 **Preview for the next chapter (Recollection and resolve)**

 **"This can't be true!"**

 **"I need to be more careful, Bronya planted a bug on me?"**

 **"Sakura, Ryan? What are you two doing here?"**

 **"Mei, acting cute won't get you out of this! I'll have my revenge on the spot!"**

 **"Ryan, that could be considered rape! I'm telling Theresa right now!"**

 **"Fuuka, are you sure you didn't lie about your age?"**

 **"My lieutenants, we're either on deep pool of shit or the most convenient solution to this problem!"**

 **"Kiana, I owe you an apology…I can't remember, I wished to but I can't!"**

 **"No plan survived first contact intact, you ever heard of that? If you do, I know you have few back up plans at your disposal!"**

 **"I see…It seems that I would have to make the decision that will determine my future right now. Then this is my answer!"**


	4. Bad plan part 1 (SS)

**_First, I'd like to apologize for the fact that Chapter Four will be delayed for few days or a week because my laptop broke down and the technician said it'll took a week maximum for them to fix it. Voila, a week later and they haven't finished the job and ask for two more days. Adding salt to the wound, my phone screen was cracked in an unfortunate accident so…Well, 'Fuck' is the appropriate word to summarize the entire thing in one word I believe. Just when I think thing's couldn't get any worse and holy shit it's an exam week! I'm also going have to face mid-terms by the next week so that also count on why would Chapter Four will be late._**

 ** _With that being said, I thank you guys for the reviews, follows and favorites for this story. Since I couldn't exactly post Chapter Five without heavily spoiling Chapter Four, I've decided to whip up some short story to publish before Chapter Four. From now on, any chapter with (SS) on front of its title will be categorized as short stories…Without further ado, enjoy!_**

* * *

Kallen, Sakura, Mei and Kiana stared at Ryan with the most frightening expression a woman could conjure, Ryan himself was backed in the corner of the room while sweating like hell with his face showing mix of apprehension, terror and regret. He was a man though, facing his own fear would be a requirement for him to accomplish this challenge that reeked absolute bullshit. Apprehension, he wondered what will the girls do to him now that he's cornered. Terror, those stare conjured by the girls promised him certain level of pain. Regret, he's a grown up young man that could think for himself so why the fuck did he agreed to this challenge list?

"Ryan-kun" Mei said in sweetly frightening sound.

"Y-Yes, Mei?" Ryan answered while stuttering.

"I find myself confused on what was your motive in doing this, Ryan-kun" Mei said while staring directly at Ryan's eyes.

"…I can explain" Ryan said while averting his own eyes from Mei.

That overused sentence never worked whenever you got caught in awkward situation, Ryan knew it but what other answer could he gave to Mei without worsening the situation he's already in? Kiana walked forward with unamused face and USP .45 on her right hand aimed at his face…Wait, what?!

"Ryan, I'll give you one chance to redeem yourself. Where is it!?" Kiana asked menacingly.

Before Ryan could answer, Kallen who saw what Kiana did decide to use the same idea by pulling out her own Colt Anaconda and aimed it toward Ryan too. He prayed to god or whatever holy beings out there that the two guns aimed at him were loaded with electro stun bullets or he will have to say good bye to his handsome face.

"I'll give you even better question, Ryan. Where did you hide it!?" Kallen pressed on for answer.

Sakura, seeing this wasn't getting anywhere summoned one of her spare katana, unsheathed it and held it straight toward Ryan's throat while pressing it lightly enough to not injuring him but making sure he felt the pressure on his throat. Sakura stared at Ryan with shadow casted on her eyes and her eye's devoid of any kind of light…Yandere mode? Perhaps, this was getting out of hand quickly.

"It is in your best interest to cooperate, Ryan…" Sakura said in grave chilling tone.

Was he the type that surrender when driven into corner? Well, Ryan wasn't a stubborn guy and he knew when to push or when to back down. This was definitely the situation where he should just rose his hands up and then kneeled down in an attempt to beg for forgiveness, he would do just that in the moment. In order to not get confused on 'what the fuck happened here?' scenario? We would have to rewind to two days ago, where the root of all problems sprouted from the ground.

.

Wednesday, Saint Freya forested area training ground. Windy afternoon? Check. Comforting sunlight in a world where storms and bad weather a common occurrence? Check. Cracking cold one with the boys? Now this was the doubtful part, the boys were definitely checked out, the cold one though…The hot one was more like it.

TRATATATATATATATATATATATATATATA!

The entire Viking platoon was crawling on the ground in effort to stay alive as real bullets flying overhead around them, none dare to face the hail of bullets even when some of them were known for being borderline suicidal sometimes. This was because they didn't equip their armor during today's training, whose idea was it? Their instructor of course. The said woman was with several campus security guards currently lined up and each of them were armed with M20SAR, they had been firing their guns for five minutes already and stopping only to reload.

"Duck and crawl you maggots! Claw your way out if you have to! Move your ass pass the finish line!" Victoria shouted as she fired her M20SAR in full auto.

Victoria did this to them so they will get used to bullets flying around them without getting nervous, their armor energy shielding may protect them for a while if they got hit by one but not getting hit would be even better. The energy shielding existed only as precaution and last resort in case The Viking couldn't avoid taking damage, Victoria's trying to break the mindset of The Vikings for relying heavily on their shielding. It would be a fatal step if they continue this, their armor won't be always available to use. There's a chance their armor could be non-functional in the future.

Rahn and Agus, being the fastest among them reached the finish line first. They sat while leaning on a tree to catch their breath after performing sprinting crawl, they soon followed by Ryan alongside few others before the rest of The Vikings successfully reached the finish line without any of them getting shot. They gathered on Victoria's position, all of them could be seen leaning on the tree or seated on the ground after today's hard physical and mental training. Each of them wore Saint Freya's academy light gray academy jersey which was now dirtied with dirt, moss, sweat and some got animal feces on it…Shower was the only thing they had in mind after they done with today's training.

"…Do any of you know why I did this to you today?" Victoria asked The Vikings.

"…We grown too reliant on our armor, ma'am" Someone answered.

It was Han who answered it for frankly, he also noticed the pattern. Almost half of the Vikings, not to mention the lieutenants too shown this case on training several days ago. There's a firefight training, their objective was to blow through enemy's fortifications inside a compound, save a prisoner and made sure the prisoner was evacuated safely. During the initial assault, several of them recklessly charged to enemy's defensive position while letting their shielding soaked up quite the damage, even standing in the open with their shielding eighty percent depleted.

When reprimanded by Victoria after the training, several of them reasoned that they were aggressively assaulting the defensive position so the others had the chance to flanked them. Sound strategy, but being aggressive and reckless were two different things. Victoria nodded her head in satisfaction before she decided to give a lecture regarding the important of avoiding taking damage in combat. Battlefield was an unpredictable place, even the most foolproof plan could go wrong with the right condition. After making sure she said what needed to be said, she sent them back to Saint Freya with a smile. All of them immediately discarded their jersey in the locker room laundry bin.

"Well, she got a point. I mean, some of us standing in the open like a fool under direct machine gun fire" Agus said.

"Hey! Thanks to that, you could move your ass away to the left!" One Viking responded.

"Yeah, yeah, we still got reprimanded because of that. Don't forget about it…Though, what would be appropriate thing to do in that situation?" Agus said out loud.

"Combined speed, agility and unpredictability would do" Ryan answered.

"Whoa commander, you sound so sure" Agus said to Ryan.

"I've did it before, works every time" Ryan said as he opened his locker.

Several of The Vikings immediately changed to their school uniform and said that they will take shower back at their home, some snickered while muttering 'Gross fucks' then they hit the shower room. Ryan took off all his clothes and flexed his muscles, Rahn walked past him and suddenly slapped his right ass. Ryan was startled enough to actually set his stance for unarmed close quarter combat only to saw Rahn looked at him with judgmental look in his face.

"What the, Rahn?!" Ryan asked confusedly.

"…How did you get muscles like that, man?" Rahn asked Ryan in serious tone.

"Huh? Naturally, I guess?" Ryan answered unsurely.

"Really? No specifics workout or anything?" Rahn right eyebrow rose in doubt.

Some remaining Vikings in the room also came over to see what was the fuss all about, they stared at Ryan who suddenly felt embarrassed for some reason and covered his crotch. Ryan body was packed with muscles but he wasn't big enough like the body builder type, he was quite slim but toned enough just in the right places and with the right amount of muscles packed. He somehow glad he didn't go to the beach these past few years, if he got this kind of reaction from his own teammates then he can't imagine how will some random girls looked at him.

"Yeah, how to get that body shape?" Han asked Ryan.

"Igor might know, he's taller than Ryan and packed with even bigger muscles!" Agus said to Han.

"What kind of regiments did you do, Ryan?" James asked Ryan.

"I told you already I don't know, this just happen naturally and would you guys please stop staring!?" Ryan said.

"Why? None of us gay here" Rahn said.

"Still!" Ryan retorted.

"Alright, alright that's enough ogling. Let's hit the shower boys!" Han said to everyone.

They went on to shower, reequip their uniform and walked out together where everyone except the lieutenants parted ways from Ryan. Along the way, they could see that The Valkyries wasn't done with their training yet. It looked like they were facing hordes of simulated zombies alongside three Knight Class Honkai Creature, they rode on a white quadruple creature resembling a horse and carry a giant lance. On the other side of the field was the first year Valkyrie Top Guns, Kiana, Kallen, Mei, Sakura, Bronya and Fuuka were all on standby to fight the holographic army that even made some of the watching Viking started sweating a bit.

"That…was a bit much, wasn't it?" Agus commented.

"What are you talking about? That was nothing for those six!" Rahn said to Agus.

"After facing off against Fuuka directly, I could tell that they will be fine" Gin also commented.

"Thoughts on this, Commander?" James asked Ryan.

"Just like Rahn and Gin said, those six will make it unscathed" Ryan said confidently.

They opened formation to let Bronya strafed the enemy formation with her Project Bunny cannon, the laser beam managed to took down several zombies and halted the advancing army. Kiana and Kallen took off toward their flank while Fuuka, Sakura and Mei formed arrowhead formation and charged toward the middle of the Honkai forces. Kiana and Kallen opened fire and distracted some of the zombies, Mei and Sakura paved a path straight toward the knights in the back before Fuuka jumped off and dropped down with flaming kick.

The kick managed to knocked one of the knights down, the other knight was about to intervene when their lance was deflected and blocked by katana wielded by Mei and Sakura. The zombies charged at Bronya who levitated herself onto Project Bunny's left shoulder before extended her hands forward, Project Bunny then moved forward, caught the zombie that leapt toward it and thrown it back toward the horde so hard it actually made crater in the impacted area. Kallen and Kiana then approached from the middle and started gunning down any zombies within their sight, it wasn't long until all of the holographic enemies were gone after receiving too many damages from six Valkyries.

"What did I tell you?" Ryan asked while grinning.

"…I'll be damned" Agus said.

"They definitely held back during that mock fight" James said.

"What did I miss?" Han suddenly said.

"Where the hell did you go to, Han!?" The surprised Rahn asked him.

"Just a bit outside the school gate, they sell hot potatoes. I bought quite a bit, you're welcome to eat"

Wordlessly, they each grabbed a potato and start conversing on what did Han missed while he went to buy the potato. Ryan bit into his and started munching when he noticed that the girls were done with their training for the day, he saw Sakura and Mei stared at him then both waved their hands. Ryan only nodded while showing them his hot potato and the girls each turned and started conversing on each other.

"Guess they just finished with their training" Mei said.

"Who did?" Kallen asked Mei.

"The boys, look" Mei said while pointing toward Ryan and the lieutenants.

"…Why are they huddling so close over there?" Kiana decided to joined the conversation.

"They were eating hot potatoes, looks like there's a mini stall opened in front of the school gate" Sakura said.

"Want to grab one after we cleaned ourselves?" Mei asked the others.

"Sure" Kallen said.

"Sounds good" Sakura said.

"I'm getting hungry just from thinking about it" Kiana said.

"Hot potatoes? Okay" Fuuka said.

"Bronya want some too" Bronya said.

Unknown to the girls, the conversation with the boys was about to take turn into 'Non-sense' zone. Can't be helped, there's a reason why woman live longer than men and that's because men could come up with utterly ridiculous idea in a heartbeat. Well, at least most that failed lived a short happy life.

"…Someone that could stole their lunch this week is brave as fuck" Han said suddenly.

"…How the hell you came up with that kind of challenge?" Ryan was astonished.

"Further training my friend, anyone up in annoying First Year Valkyrie's top guns and survived for entire day? Okay let's downgrade this a bit, stealing Bronya or Fuuka's lunch could actually kill you so let's limit this to Mei, Kallen, Sakura and Kiana then you only need to avoid death for three minutes…What do you say? Anyone interested?" Han asked the others.

"No" Igor said.

"Holy freaking hell, I value my life so no" Rahn said.

"That was plain stupid" Gin said.

"…I thought you're the smartest among us" Agus said.

"This is a bad plan, but I'm intrigued on its results" James said.

"Besides, who could do this then live to tell the tale?" Rahn asked Han.

Han didn't answer but his eyes locked on someone within the group, the others soon followed and what in their sight was Ryan who was munching the last piece of hot potato in his hand and when he felt their gaze he immediately stopped and swallow. Confused for a bit on why would his lieutenant gazed at him with metaphorical thought bubble written 'Him? He'll make it', he then immediately realized what those gazes implied when he remembered the topic of their current conversation.

"…No! Holy shit you guys think I want to do it!?" Ryan asked in disbelieve.

"You're the only one who can!" Agus commented.

"No! I won't!" Ryan said firmly.

"I am willing to pay for five thousand credits to see you in action, I know you want that new Ace Combat game!" Han said while grinning.

Ryan stopped arguing and his left eye twitched a bit at the mention of the sum of money he will received for this non sense, he wanted a new game from Steam and this one had the price of five thousand credits…but still, there's no way he would give in just for five thousand credits…His pride was on the line, he won't sell it short.

"…You seriously think that would persuade me to do it?" Ryan asked with half closed eyes.

"I'm chiming in! You know that Deluxe Kobe Beef Yakiniku Lunch Pack that was sold on canteen but it was pricy as hell? I got a coupon for it and I'm willing to give it to you if you do this!" James said.

"What the, you got wha-"

"I'll give you fifty percent of my characters' item on Dota 2 if you're willing to do this, you free to pick whatever you wanted" Gin said while smiling.

"Even you Gin?!"

"Last I heard, you want to check that buffet on Wellington Hotel. I got a contact there, want me to get you in easily? Do this shit" Rahn said.

"How the hell-"

"Oh, remember that Avenged band? They will hold concert on Soukai in a month, I got free ticket for you to attend if you do this hehehe" Agus said as he chuckled.

"Guys!"

"Box of Russia's finest Vodka, last I heard you were out of drinks and I'm willing to share mine. Plus, two movie tickets of your own choosing…Perfect for a date" Igor said while pulling off a rare smile.

Ryan was speechless, his lieutenants actually remembered on his whims and small wishes then turned it as a weapon against himself! They managed to secure everything within the short time they've met and willing to give it to him in exchange for doing whatever nonsense that Han thought? Ryan wasn't sure if he loved or loathed his friends right now. They have everything he wanted for the past few days and he will be able to get it easily…All he had to do left? Discarded that pride of his.

"…Alright fine I'll do it! I expected this deal to be upheld based on laws of bros and approved by council of men. Agreed!?" Ryan asked his lieutenants.

"You have our word, Ryan" Han smiled as he shook hands with him.

"Give me time to do recon, I will take action on Friday" Ryan said as he left the scene immediately.

His lieutenants watched as Ryan left them in favor of going home quickly and soothe his nerves by drinking hot tea…Ryan was a weak man against desire, let's just hope that fact would stay between his friends. Gin suddenly laughed softly when the others looked at him, he gave them a knowing look.

"Okay…I know we just made that bullshit reward, time to procure what we need boys" Gin said.

"Hahaha, you read my mind Gin" Han said as he left.

"We got a day to do it, that shipment I procure from the motherland better on the way already" Igor said as he left for home.

"That concert ticket is going to be a bit tight, I need to contact my friend back on Indonesia for a pass I guess" Agus said as he started making a call.

"And I have to beg for that entrance ticket, wish me luck guys" Rahn said as he took out his phone.

"Meh, reckon I had to procure that coupon. I knew the canteen lady though, might as well stop by on her apartment tonight" James said as he walked away while smirking.

"…Is it just me or James going to get laid tonight?" Gin asked the others.

.

Friday, the fated day where Ryan would discard his pride and actually steal four school girl lunch boxes away from them. He had been doing reconnaissance yesterday and he got a lot of actionable Intel that he could use…He knew that they always eat lunch under specific tree on Saint Freya's academy mini park near Medical Wing, Fuuka rarely joined them due to her student council duties while Sakura would be there except for Monday and Wednesday due to her duty on the Infirmary, they will huddle together underneath the tree except during rainy days where they ate in the classroom.

Mei's lunch was her own handmade dish, Bronya always has the same content as Mei's lunch, Kiana would eat bread or carry her own lunch box if Cecilia was at home, Kallen would carry lunch alongside a fruit, Sakura usually has whatever Kallen has and vice versa but she usually has snacks instead of fruit. How did Ryan know all this? Some part of the week, he just had too much time to spend outside so yeah. Anyway, Ryan was currently above the tree the girls usually eat lunch with a balaclava on, a live feed camera stuck on his right shoulder alongside black gloves on his hands.

"Looking good, commander" Han said through radio.

"Tch, really. I expected my payment by the end of the day" Ryan said back at Han.

"No worries, we got everything secured. All you need to do, is to do the deed" Han said.

The girls approached the tree Ryan was on, he exhaled as he saw that they chatted happily with each other. He made sure his face concealed, the camera was transmitting and his gloves fit perfectly with his hands…This was it. He put on sunglasses as a precaution if one of them caught his eyes, those girls can't be underestimated even for a bit. He heard subtle chuckling in the background noise over the radio, his lieutenants were sure having fun with this.

"Camera transmitting, radio's functioning well and target's entering strike range" Ryan said.

"Copy that commander, your objective is to survive for three minutes after snatching their lunch boxes. You're free to do whatever means necessary to keep it off their hands, just don't get yourself into big trouble with authorities. This is it, god bless and help you. Commence Operation: Gremlin" Han said.

"Commencing Operation: Gremlin, just to say, I hate you guys" Ryan said with the most even tone he ever produced.

Without wasting additional time, Ryan set a phase shifter he strapped on his back and set the console on his left arm to ready for storing any acquired items. With it, he let gravity do its job, his body fell to the side and he landed on the ground then kneeling. Kiana, Sakura, Mei, Kallen and Bronya was making their way to their usual spot to eat lunch when they heard rustling above the tree and something black dropped from it. They immediately identify it as one of The Vikings, suspiciously wearing balaclava, with sunglasses, a camera on his right shoulder, a console on his left arm alongside black gloves. Seriously, who the hell was that guy?

"Um, can we help yo-"

The guy straight up sprinted pass them and the girls felt something was taken away from them, each of them checked their hands to find their lunch box except Bronya's was missing. Ryan got four lunch boxes in his hands, stored them inside phase shifter and make his way toward the school building.

"Objective acquired, timer started!" Han said.

"Huh?!" Mei was shocked.

"Did he just-" Sakura said in disbelieve.

"What the, my lunch? MY LUNCH! MY MOM COOKED IT THIS MORNING!" Kiana shouted at Ryan.

"Unforgiveable! That was Sakura's cooking!" Kallen shouted at Ryan.

"Get that bastard!" Kiana said as she started chasing after Ryan.

Ryan had to run faster because Kiana followed by the other girls started chasing him like zombies in the red zone area, he genuinely terrified when he noticed how fast could Kiana actually sprinted with bloodlust shown in her eyes. Ryan rammed the school building door opened, startling few Valkyries there before he run toward the second floor as quickly as he can. Kiana and Kallen were the first one to reach the school building and saw several Valkyries talking about a strange guy, Kiana approached them both and decided to ask.

"Guy, with balaclava. Where is he!?" Kiana asked.

"Um, he goes up the stairs?" The girl said.

"Thanks!" Kiana said.

Just as she was about to go up, Ryan was going down and both stared at each other for a second before they realized what were they doing. Ryan immediately bolted his way back up and Kiana keeping pursuit with Kallen following behind her, seeing no other way out except the roof Ryan immediately head there.

"One minute" Han said.

Ryan reached the roof and he catch his breathing for a bit, this flat roof would provide him enough time to waste because he knew Kiana was going to engage him in combat at this very roof. The door to the roof was opened for the second time and there stood Kiana, she walked slowly toward Ryan who was showing no signs of running away this time.

"I don't know who you are, but you will regret that you ever messed with me and my friends!" Kiana declared to Ryan.

Speaking will definitely reveal his identity so he opted for a language every human being especially male could speak, he set his stance for close quarter combat. Kiana immediately agreed to the challenge as she set her own stance and advanced slowly toward Ryan, that's where Kiana sensed something familiar. There was this unmistakable feeling in her gut that she had seen that stance somewhere before, but now was not the time to doubt as she ran forward to take the initiative.

"Predictable" Ryan commented in low tone.

Kiana sent several jabs at Ryan who effective dodged it, he moved to the left side to avoid a left thrust kick from Kiana and just when he thought he was safe it turned out Kiana used her other feet to send another thrust kick toward him. He managed to cross guard his chest and even then he was sent skidding on the floor two meters away, Kiana did hit hard and he was sure she still held back her true strength.

"Hmph! You're quite attentive huh" Kiana said.

Ryan stepped forward and started sending several jabs of his own, Kiana didn't choose to dodge but she blocked or deflect the blow to the side. Jab wasn't effective? Then let's try grabbing. Ryan successfully grabbed Kiana's right hand, pulled her towards him but before he could properly lock her in place Kiana jumped a bit and send a flying kick to Ryan's face.

The impact was quite hard as Ryan stumblingly moved back and prepared himself for the next attack, he was surprised when Kiana disappeared from his field of vision and he was greeted by a left hook from Kiana who appeared so suddenly on his right side. Ryan was thrown back but recovered quickly by rolling to the left, he was determined to not falling for the next hit. He risked himself by approaching Kiana, hell she was twenty centimeters shorter than him so he might as well take advantage of it. He balled his fist together and performed a downward slam with it, but that wasn't a problem at all for Kiana who just grabbed his hands midair before it even hit her head.

"Huh? Wait" Kiana said.

She squeezed the hands that was above her and there was a feeling as if she held something metallic, she focused on her attacker's right hand and she squeezed it a bit. It was unmistakably a metallic hand, there's only one person she knew who wore prosthetic in this school and he was the last person she thought to do something absurd such as stealing her lunch.

"Ryan? You're the one who stole our lunch?!" Kiana asked in disbelieve.

"Two minutes, commander" Han said.

There went his identities, Ryan sighed as he stepped back and removed his balaclava alongside his sunglasses thus showing his medium spiky green hair and crimson eyes. Kiana's disbelieve turned into confusion then irritation as tick mark appeared on her forehead, her precious lunch time was disturbed by him? Doesn't matter how handsome he was this was a crime he couldn't get away that easily!

"Ryan, give me back our lunch box! Then you might get the chance walked out of this intact!" Kiana demanded to Ryan.

"Yeah well…I can't do that in the moment, if you could be patient for a minute then perhaps-"

Ryan eyes widened and he immediately turned around and started running to the edge of the building as Kallen appeared behind Kiana and she wasted no time firing her Colt Anaconda. Luckily there was a small balcony directly underneath the place he was on and he immediately jumped down to it and opened the window, it was an art room and he only took brief glance before he opened the door and bolted out from it. When he got out though, the corridor was guarded by Mei on one end and Sakura on the other. They were surprised when they saw Ryan there and Mei was about to asked him if he see any suspicious guy, she stopped because Ryan still had the gloves on, a console on his left arm and the camera on his right shoulder.

"Ryan-kun! It was you all along!?" Mei asked in surprised tone.

"Oh, motherfuc-"

Mei and Sakura slowly advanced toward him and Ryan got two options, stand and fight like a man or run like a little bitch. Guess what he picked for this scenario? His brain processed information in unreal speed, he got around ten seconds to analyze Mei and Sakura movement and come up with a strategy. Mei and Sakura may didn't had their katanas drawn out but the possibility of them knowing hand to hand combat techniques was not zero, sprinting pass them was a good option but once he escaped then where would he go?

It's a safe bet if he could just hold his position here, Ryan got thirty seconds left to survive the whole ordeal and once it was done, he could just give the lunch box to them and apologize. He was about to dashed his way out when he noticed that Kiana and Kallen had joined Mei and Sakura in their blockade…Ryan found out that this was it, there was no way out left for him except to survive and prevent the lunch boxes being taken back for the next half a minute.

"Phew…Now this sealed my fate" Ryan lamented.

"Nice knowing you, commander" Han cheekily said.

"Your bad idea is going to kill me you son of a bitch!" Ryan said to Han.

All four Valkyries charged toward Ryan who had to maneuver his entire body to avoid being grabbed on, these girls like to play rough. He felt a sensation and hands encircling him from behind as Sakura grabbed him, Ryan successfully escaped from Sakura's grasp by side stepping her and threw her toward Mei. Kallen and Kiana used the corridor's wall to avoid Mei and Sakura and managed to surprise Ryan, he set his stance to guard but the two ladies weren't going to launch a punch or a kick. They instead grabbed him and tackled him to the floor.

"Shit!" Ryan cussed.

"Don't struggle now!" Kallen said.

Both Kiana and Kallen grabbed his arms before Sakura who just recovered took both of his legs, he was surprised that the girls able to lifted him that easily before he got dragged into the art room possibly for torture and coercion to giving back their lunch box. Mei entered last and she shut the door before locking it, now no one will be able to interfere them.

.

Back to the present time, Ryan had explained everything toward the girls but they still hadn't lowered their weapons at all. There was a brief silence for around ten seconds before Kallen sighed as she sheathed her gun and ruffled her head, Kiana followed soon while still staring at Ryan with 'What in the actual heck' expression at him and Sakura looked at him like she's looking at an idiot. So, Ryan planned to befriend these girls and the action he did just now may backfired that plan. What kind of girls would want to befriend a guy doing this kind of stuff? He might just get included into their 'weirdo' category of a boy.

All of a sudden though he heard giggles coming from Mei, Sakura shook her head while muttering 'Honestly', Kiana and Kallen shrugged at each other. This might turn out better than he expected, Ryan thought so at least. He was about to speak before a katana was thrusted upon him by Sakura in lightning speed. Scared shitless? Of course! Ryan was frozen in place and he tried to identify where was he stabbed by Sakura but he found out that it was the camera on his left shoulder that was destroyed by her, the camera split into two and fallen on the floor.

"There, no one will eavesdrop on this conversation" Sakura said.

"O-Okay, I said I'm sorry already. Here, I'll give you guys your lunch box back" Ryan said as he operated the console.

Ryan operated his console to activate the phase shifter, four lunch boxes materialized on his hands and he handed it to the girls. Each girl got their lunch back and they were ecstatic that now they could eat their lunch, he was about to walked past them before Kiana grabbed his collar and yanked it toward her.

"Oh no mister, where do you think you're going?" Kiana asked him.

"Err, lunch?" Ryan answered unsurely.

"We're not done yet, Ryan" Kallen said as she gently pushed him back to the wall.

"Wait, I already gave your lunch back and apologize! Let me go already!" Ryan said.

"You think you could get away without a punishment?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"…No?" Ryan answered hesitantly.

"Precisely. What should we do with you hmm? Well he did make us exercise for quite a bit, I can't get mad that he helped kept my figure" Kallen said.

"Indeed…Oh wait, you said you had several rewards waiting if you survived this right?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"Yeah?" Ryan said.

"Oh I see where you going with this, didn't you said one of them is a buffet at Wellington Hotel?" Mei asked Ryan.

"Uhuh" Ryan answered.

"Splendid! I always wanted to go there once, you could take us four there" Mei said while smiling.

"Huh!? Four of you at once?!" Ryan asked in surprised tone.

"We'll be waiting for the invitation okay? We're going to have lunch now before the break is over, bye Ryan" Kallen said as she started walking away.

"I'll be waiting for that all you can eat event!" Kiana said while exiting the room.

"Don't forget okay?" Mei said as she walked out.

"…I hope they got sweet cakes there" Sakura said as she walked out of the room too.

The art room was now completely silent with Ryan still standing in one of the corners with cold sweat dripping from his brows, this was not how it supposed to go. He took out his smartphone, dialed Han's number and it was picked up not two seconds later.

"Dude! You're alive?!" Han asked.

"…Sadly yes, I am alive…" Ryan said in lethargic tone.

"Ha! Guess you got those rewards, congratulations Ryan!" Han said as he started chuckling.

"Yeah, yeah. Put this on loudspeaker mode, I got something to announce" Ryan said to Han.

"Done. So, what's the juicy news?" Han asked him.

"…I got bad news for Rahn, the girls want a piece of action in Wellington Hotel buffet. You have to get four extra pass" Ryan said regarding the situation.

"…FFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKK!" Rahn suddenly shouted.

"…Whoa, that's why you survived? That was quite pricy!" Han asked Ryan.

"Yeah, I don't care what method you use. I'm lucky those girls let me off easily, get me that pass or they will come after you too and there's nothing I could do to help!" Ryan said in threatening tone.

Ryan ended the call, pocketed his smartphone and made his way to the cafeteria for some delicious lunch. That last part maybe a bullshit but it was necessary in order for them to be convinced to help him, they got him into this mess and it's their job to pull him out of it…Wait a second, is he going to go on a date with four beautiful girls and it won't be on his expense? He was quite lucky, that put a smile on his lips before he met Fuuka who was walking on the corridor. He offered a polite smile and nod his head before he went past her, but that failed as his right arm was caught by her.

"I got a report from several girls about a Viking who was causing a scene few minutes ago, he was seen with balaclava, a camera on the right shoulder and wearing black gloves…Your physique matched the description given, I need you to come with me for questioning" Fuuka said to Ryan.

"Hah…I can explain" Ryan said stiffly.

"You can explain on student council office, this way" Fuuka said as she dragged Ryan away with her.

…Ryan sighed, there's no way he'll make it for lunch today if Student Council of Saint Freya Academy targeted his ass. They reached the student council office, opened the door and Ryan saw Bronya stared at him with her usual impassive face. Mei, Kiana, Kallen and Sakura was there too and they avoided looking at him with awkward smile plastered on their face. Ryan looked at the table in the far end of the room and there was a cute girl staring at him.

She had long blonde hair tied in left side ponytail, bright crimson eyes, she had her arms folded as she examined him. She then smirked when she saw his confused face slowly morphed into realization, he looked like fish out of the water.

"Well, we meet again Ryan. Playing innocent and foolish girl act is tougher than it looks you know?" The girl said while smirking.

Unable to reply due to his speechlessness, Ryan looked between the girl and Kallen multiple times. They have met before this but Kallen didn't even told him about this critical piece of information? He's screwed, the said girl then rose from her seat and walked forward toward Ryan. For those who still didn't get it, that girl name was Clair. She's Ryan fellow co-workers at Celestial Clarity restaurant and Ryan actually worked there without knowing that Clair was Saint Freya Academy Student Council President.

"…Shitttt" Ryan muttered.

(Insert To Be Continued meme)


	5. Wolves (SS)

**Still didn't get my laptop back, if by 10th April it still can't be fixed then screw it I'm going to rewrite Chapter Four all over again. The least I could do is giving you guys several short stories for now, so here's another one for you guys. Guess this one a bit rushed.**

* * *

Village of Soukai is a small village located far away from nearby city, it existed as a remote settlement for those who would like to cross the nearby mountain range. To put it simply, a frontier village in the middle of nowhere. The villagers in there lived happily, although there's only less than thirty people that settled permanently there. It was relatively peaceful tiny village, surrounded by thick forest. Kiana Kaslana and Kallen Kaslana was a pair of cousins that lived there, the girls decided to move there after they lost their job back in the city.

Kiana worked as a local farmer, tending to the garden behind their home. It was among the primary commodity that the village produces, her farm product had been a great source of income for the last two years. Kallen was a hunter, she often went out to the forest to hunt animals such as deer or wild boar then she sold her prey to the local shop after she took several parts of it to take home. It was an ordinary day for the two girls, Kallen woke up before Kiana and went to take a morning shower. Today was a day off for her, she decided that she would walk around the village for a bit before she maybe helps Kiana with her farm.

Kiana woke up soon after Kallen entered the shower, she looked to the bed beside her and found that Kallen wasn't there. She went down the stairs from their bedroom on the second floor to the kitchen, she opened the fridge and drank a bottle of cold milk when she noticed the bathroom door closed.

"Kallen? Are you in the shower?" Kiana asked Kallen.

"Yeah, I'm taking a day off" Kallen said.

"I see, well the garden doesn't need to be tended today so I guess I could come with you" Kiana said.

"In that case, let's have breakfast then go see what's happening in town" Kallen said.

Kallen got off from shower and Kiana went in, Kallen then cooked simple breakfast consisted of cheese toast, bacon and sunny side egg. After finishing their breakfast, the two girls went out from their house dressed in their casual dress. First stop of the day? The local shop, it was in the center of the town and it sold everything. Food, equipment's and even weapons. The owner of the shop was a young man named Gin Yamato, right now he's tending the front of his shop when Kallen and Kiana walked toward him.

"Ah, Kiana and Kallen. Both of you quite early today, haven't got my shop opened. Is there something you need?" Gin asked them both.

"Not at the moment, just taking morning stroll" Kallen said.

"I see. Oh in that case, if you run into Ryan on the way, tell him that his order already arrived if he wants to pick it up" Gin said to the girls.

"Order?" Kiana asked Gin.

"Yeah, our sheriff need to keep his tools stocked up it seems" Gin said as he flipped the door sign into 'open'

Local sheriff of the village, Ryan Taurus was his name. A young police officer that was outcasted into Soukai after he was framed for killing a fellow officer, he was proven innocent but the people in the city don't want him living there. So, to avoid protest, the police commissioner relocated him as a sheriff for Soukai village. Working by himself in the field, he was bored out of his mind because the people in here lived peacefully and the most problem he got was bear invasion, lost people stumbling upon the village or villager that had too much drink. Anyhow, the man was skilled in handling a gun and he wasn't afraid to use it if the people in the village is in trouble.

"We'll do that, catch you later" Kiana said as they leave.

"Sure, sure" Gin said.

The next stop was a local clinic run by Kallen's best friend, Sakura Yae. The pink haired girl was among the first settler in the village and worked as local doctor, she was the first person the villager went to whenever they experience any kind of sickness or when they need medicines. Her assistance, Murata Himeko was actually older than her but she was less experienced in handling medicine compared to Sakura. Both of them already opened the clinic early in the morning when Kiana and Kallen dropped by, Himeko was in the reception desk while Sakura was behind her mixing some herbs to create medicine.

"Hey there Himeko!" Kiana said.

"Kiana huh? You woke up quite early today" Himeko said while smiling.

"Hey now, I liked to sleep in but not every day! How's your morning so far?" Kiana asked Himeko.

"Pretty good, I slept comfortably" Himeko said.

"…Is that Kiana?" Sakura asked as she turned around.

"Why yes! Oh my, Sakura. You don't look so good" Kiana said to Sakura.

"Yes, I was working a bit late last night…Tell you something though, I heard wolf howl last night somewhere in the direction to the mountain" Sakura said as she yawned.

Everyone in the room looked at Kallen for clarification because in truth, Kallen was the one who was more experienced with wild life compared to them. Kallen immediately found that to be strange and she also immediately went alert, wolf was the only animal that she hadn't seen around the village for two years she stayed. A wolf howl last night would mean a pack was close by and there's a possibility they will invade the village in search for food.

"That wasn't comforting…I'll tell Ryan after this, it's a good information you got Sakura" Kallen said.

"Glad I could help, so is there anything we could do for you two?" Sakura asked them.

"We're just strolling around for now, but we'll be back to let you know regarding that wolf howl" Kallen said.

"Alright then" Sakura said.

"Oh, if you could, can you deliver this to Han Muller? He ordered this medicine yesterday, heard he's going to be in the church this morning…Here's ten credits for the trouble" Himeko said.

"Sure, we'll be on our way then. Until later!" Kiana said.

Himeko handed Kiana the medicine bag and the money before she sent them off. Both girls exited the clinic and headed toward the church just short hike to the north, they entered it and found a man sitting on the front row of the church seats. He was Han Muller, a local researcher that stayed on the village in purpose of studying biology. He was the newest settler in the village, not many people knew him, but he was a friendly guy so people were content in letting him stay. Kiana approached Han when she noticed that his left arm was bandaged and there's a bit of red bleeding through the fabric, she couldn't help but to be curious about it.

"Han?" Kiana asked Han.

"…Kiana, wasn't it? I still had trouble differentiating between you and Kallen. Ah, was that the medicine I ordered to the clinic?" Han asked Kiana.

"Yeah, it is. What happened to your left arm? Looks painful!" Kiana said as she handed the medicine.

"Wild dog, it bit me then run off yesterday. It was quite late so I had to suffice with first aid until morning, glad the medicine was ready" Han said while smiling.

"Oh, it's Kiana and Kallen" Someone said.

A big guy walked toward them, the people of the village called him Father Igor. The priest of the church on Soukai, he was the religious man and he was the first settler of the village. As he walked toward them, he noticed that Han was there and saw his left arm.

"My god, what happened to your arm?" Igor asked Han.

"Wild dog bite, father. Quite painful and need to be treated soon" Han said while smiling bitterly.

"I pray that your hand will heal nicely, Han…That being said, did anyone saw Sheriff Ryan today? There's something that I need to talk to him" Igor asked them.

"No but we're planning to meet him. If you have a message perhaps we could rely it to him" Kallen said.

"Okay, it's regarding a wolf howl I heard last night. This is the first time it happened, so I was quite worried" Igor said.

"Sakura said the same thing, father. This confirms it that there's a wolf pack around the village" Kallen said.

"That's concerning…Well I wouldn't keep you for long, it's best if you could inform Ryan soon" Igor said.

"Will do" Kallen said to Igor.

Leaving the church, Kallen couldn't helped but think that it was strange for a wolf to went around this area. But after thinking a while, it makes sense for them to come here for there's plenty of food for them to hunt around here. She hoped that they won't come to the village though, there's not many people that could fight well among them. In the middle of the road, they met with Theresa. She's a witch frankly speaking, she's the old practitioner of magical arts that reside in the eastern edge of the village. People should fear her, but most of them saw her as a fortune teller instead of a witch so they were content around her.

"Kiana, Kallen, good morning" Theresa greeted the girls.

"Morning Ms. Theresa, hope you have a wonderful day" Kallen greeted Theresa back.

"Morning, where are you going?" Kiana asked her.

"I was going to the shop, I need to buy couple of things" Theresa said.

"Sure, we'll be on our way then" Kallen said.

They reached the village's sheriff office not long after that and they entered the building, in the front part of the desk reception they met with James The Jailer. He was the one in charge with the village's jail, but he only ever jailed several drunken villagers to prevented them making mess around the village. It wasn't new case, life in the frontier could be harsh sometime. When he saw the two girls, he immediately looked up from the book he was reading.

"Morning ladies, I assume you're looking for our sheriff?" James asked them.

"Yes, is he here?" Kiana asked James.

"You just missed him. He got called by Bronya to the western part of the village, she said it's urgent. Detective Mei was also with him, best you get there soon" James said.

Bronya Zaychick was known as a wonder child, she had the power to speak with the dead souls in her dreams. She first demonstrated this ability a year ago when she managed to help Ryan finding a lost person that died in the wilderness near Soukai. Mei Raiden was an old friend of Ryan who also moved in to Soukai as an investigator, she got into similar circumstances as Ryan and was casted out from the force. Since then she took on the role as private investigator, helping solving the mysteries around the village which was quite a lot for a small village. But usually it turned out be something petty or not so important, Mei still considered it a practice though so she was fine with it.

"Will do, thanks!" Kallen said.

Both girls quickly walked to the western edge of the village where they saw several villagers crowded on the street, that rarely happened so they immediately went there and found Fuuka who was a wonder child as she could see someone's aura once a day. She noticed Kallen and Kiana walked toward her and she nodded as a sign that she greeted them. The other villagers there was Agus, the carpenter tough guy. Benio, who was Theresa's fellow magic practitioner. Momose, Benio's apprentice. Michael, the owner of the village's bar. Siegfried, the esteemed bodyguard. Cecilia, the head of the village. Clair, the local entertainer that often performed at the bar and Victoria, rumored as a woman that suffered PTSD and reside in the village often acting like not so sane woman.

"Fuuka, what's going on here?" Kiana asked.

"There's a murder, it just happened last night" Fuuka said.

""Huh?!"" Kiana and Kallen said.

Murder? On this small village? Surely some of them got into a fight sometimes but no one will go as far as to kill someone! They already like a big family, to think this would happen was unbelievable! Kallen and Kiana went through the crowd and saw Ryan, Mei and Bronya inspecting a dead body in the front porch of a house. The person that died was Rahn, the local bounty hunter that usually catch missing or wanted people to be brought back to the nearby city. He was quite a nice guy, but seeing him died perhaps a sign for them that his dangerous job finally brought death toward him. Ryan was kneeling on the ground, inspecting Rahn with his gloved hands alongside Mei who were taking notes about her observation of the dead body.

"I told him that his job was dangerous, guess he met his end sooner" Ryan commented.

"But his cause of death was strange. He lost his throat and his right side was torn off, as if bitten by something" Mei said.

"What do you think? Bears? Because if a human did this, they are sick fucks" Ryan said.

"Probably, but we still haven't got enough clue" Mei said to Ryan.

"Ryan? Was that Rahn?!" Kiana asked Ryan.

"Yes Kiana, don't get too close, we still don't know what killed him…Huh? Kallen! Come over here!" Ryan called Kallen.

Kallen went over toward Ryan when she spotted the wounds on Rahn's corpse, Ryan nodded at her and Kallen quickly inspected the wound without touching it. The hole on the right side of his torso was gaping wide, half of his right ribs was gone and his throat too. It was without a doubt an attack by a wild animal, judging by the witness report when she went around town the probability he was attacked by a wolf was high.

"Sakura and father Igor reported there's a wolf howl last night, they are capable on dealing this kind of wound" Kallen said.

"So was I told by Agus and Clair as they also heard it, so was it the wolves that killed him?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Perhaps, but Ryan…The wound on his torso, that was too big to be caused by a wolf's jaw" Kallen said.

Kallen had spotted bitten wounds caused by wolves before on the city, it wasn't as big as the one she saw right now. Mei and Ryan looked at each other before they inspected the wound again, indeed it was too big to be performed by a normal wolf. Uncertainty dreaded upon the two as they looked at Cecilia who approached them both, she looked distressed and currently massaging her right temple.

"How did it go, Sheriff Ryan?" Cecilia asked him.

"…Unknown at this time but its probably caused by a wolf, I would suggest an assembly today at the village's courtyard ma'am" Ryan said.

"Let's do that then" Cecilia nodded her head.

It wasn't long until the church bell was ringed several times as a sign to head toward the courtyard, soon every villager presented themselves on the courtyard. Cecilia, Ryan and Mei was in the podium looking down upon the present villagers.

"Dawn of this day, we lost a villager by the name Rahn. He was known as a bounty hunter…Early investigation results presumed that he was killed by wolves, I officially declared our village is in danger until this case resolved!" Cecilia begun.

Murmurs immediately filled the crowd as the news struck them, but it immediately died when Cecilia nodded her head toward Ryan who stepped forward. He was the one in charge with the safety of the village, this was the moment that needed him the most.

"There's a possibility that the wolves would be back tonight, I want everyone to stay home by dusk. Lock your doors and windows, do not go outside whatever the cost! I need several people to help me secure the village from tonight on until this case was solved! Kallen, Mei, Siegfried, James, Agus. We will patrol tonight in effort to prevent further loss of our village!" Ryan said.

The crowd agreed on it and they dispersed to continue their daily activities, Ryan went over towards Gin shop and procured his ordered double-barreled Olympia Shotgun as he will patrol the village. Kallen went back to her house and took out her hunting bow, the quiver and full stock of arrows alongside hunting dagger. James and Mei with the standard issued revolver pistol, James will be guarding the sheriff office which was their base of operation while Mei will patrol the village with Ryan and Kallen. Siegfried with his family sword, he would standby around the courtyard and the church with Agus who brought his axe. Preparation was complete, nightfall was coming.

.

(Night One)

.

Siegfried yawned as he and Agus patrol around the courtyard and the church with their weapons in hand, both had been at it for hours and they didn't see anything abnormal. Ryan with double barrel shotgun in hand was walking around the western side of the tiny village, his eyes remain vigilant for any signs of trouble. Mei was walking with Kallen with D shaped hunting bow on her hands. She knocked the door on the clinic, Sakura was still awake and she opened the door.

"Yes?" Sakura asked.

"We're just checking, Sakura. Everything alright?" Mei asked Sakura.

"For now…Haven't heard or seen anything strange" Sakura said.

"Is Himeko asleep already?" Mei asked Sakura.

"She is…I haven't slept well yesterday, better be going to sleep now" Sakura said.

"Of course. Good night" Mei said.

"Night" Sakura said while yawning.

The door to the clinic was closed and they continue on their patrol, it was then the patrolling villager could hear a wolf howl in the distance. No one could pin pointed the direction it came from, but this was it for the patrol team.

"This is it" Kallen said as she took an arrow from the quiver.

"Yes, we better be ready" Mei said as she took out her revolver.

"Huh, well here we go" Ryan said as he checked the shotgun's ammo.

For more than an hour after that, it was calm and quiet with only crickets providing the background voice of the village. It was way past midnight, there's no signs of wolf could be seen anywhere. Ryan was sitting on front porch of the sheriff's office with a flask of whiskey on his hand, tonight had been especially cold and there's mist all over the place. Furthermore, it was a cloudy night so the road was fucking dark enough for them to stumble if they didn't carry flashlight. James was taking his sweet time reading the book that he read in the morning, but he occasionally would watch the area around him.

Kallen and Mei decided to stop by on Gin's shop front porch, they were keeping watch around the area when Kallen saw a shadow went pass between houses in the distance. The street lamp was illuminated enough that Kallen could see the passing shadow underneath it, Kallen shook Mei's arm who was sleeping for a bit. Mei immediately awoken and stared at Kallen, she subtly pointed toward the street lamp and Mei took out her revolver alongside a flashlight then she leaded the way followed by Kallen.

They reached the streetlamp and found nothing or no one around it, but it still didn't cause them to let their guard down. Kallen checked the ground around when she noticed something, it was a footprint. Kallen whistled to attract Mei's attention, she looked at Kallen then she flashed the flashlight to the ground. It was then the saw the footprint embedded on the ground clearly, it has unnatural structure on it as it was definitely didn't belong to a human. The bush around them rattled and both Mei and Kallen went back to back on each other, there was no wind so whatever caused that bush to move was something they've been looking for.

"Kallen" Mei called her.

"Yeah?" Kallen answered.

"…I'm scared" Mei said.

"…Frankly, me too" Kallen said.

They heard footsteps running quickly toward them, both Kallen and Mei had their eyes wide opened and alert as both try identifying the direction that sound was coming from. Mei was waving her flashlight around when she caught a two set of glowing red eyes, two meters tall black body full of fur and was running toward her with its hand extended and claws out. Mei gasped, Kallen looked behind her and spotted the same thing as it swiped its hand towards them. Both managed to rolled out of the way, Mei kept the flashlight on it. It was a bipedal wolf with red eyes and it was growling at them, Mei didn't waste anymore time as she raised her revolver and squeezed the trigger.

BANG!

Ryan and James was startled by the gun firing sound, both looked at each other before they raised their weapon and sprinted toward the direction Mei and Kallen was on as quickly as possible. Siegfried and Agus also heard the noise and they rushed to the scene, but something jumped on them and managed to clawed Siegfried in the torso. Siegfried grunted as he evaded the next attack coming from the dark before he flashed his flashlight around and found another pair of bipedal wolf with yellow eyes.

"Shit, you're ugly!" Siegfried said.

The wolf charged at him but Agus came to Siegfried's aid by jumping on the wolf, as Agus grabbed the wolf by the head as Siegfried proceed to rammed the wolf with his sword. But alas it was grabbed by it before it went completely through its body, the sword was thrown to the side and Agus was slammed to the ground. The wolf proceeded to bite Agus on the left side stomach and Agus screamed in pain, Siegfried rushed to aid him and punch the wolf as hard as he could before he rolled, grabbed his sword and slash the wolf right in the face. The wolf staggered back and Siegfried flashed the wolf, its left hand was a bit deformed than its right hand. The wolf growled before it run away from them.

"Whoa kid, that was reckless!" Siegfried commented on Agus.

"Heh, someone's gotta save you old man…Argh, it hurts like hell!" Agus said as he clutched his injured left stomach.

"Yeah, it did. Come on, let's get ourselves to the clinic" Siegfried said as he lifted Agus.

Meanwhile, Mei and Kallen managed to evaded the wolf's attack long enough when they spotted James and Ryan ran towards them. Kallen shot an arrow toward the wolf which was embedded on it's right chest. The wolf growl in pain as it ran off, Ryan managed to fired a shot toward the wolf which injured the wolf's right leg. The wolf successfully escaped, but just as they think they were safe a crash was heard and a girl could be heard screaming. It was coming from Kallen's house, the four of them immediately head there and they could saw Kiana was coming out of the front door but that was before a wolf pounced on her from inside the house.

"KIANA! NO!" Kallen shouted.

Ryan wasted no time as he fired another shot toward the wolf, this time to the head. The wolf staggered back when Kallen unleashed an arrow at its face, she was followed by Mei and James who shot the wolf with their revolver until they were out of ammo. The wolf limped to the right and died, Kallen went to check on Kiana but they were too late. Kiana wasn't breathing anymore, she died when that wolf pounced on her. Kallen hung her head as she shook her head in sorrow, this couldn't be happening.

"Oh kami…" Mei said as she covered her mouth.

"No…We're too late" James said.

"…That thing killed her huh…" Ryan said.

Ryan took out a flashlight and inspected the dead wolf, it was two meters tall, had yellow eyes and it was full of bullet holes and an arrow stuck on its forehead. He had suspicion on what it is and he wasn't liking on the direction this was going.

.

(Night One ended)

.

The village was mourning and angry, Kiana was taken away from them by the wolves. Ryan and James dragged the wolf's corpse into the courtyard, everyone was there to witness the thing that took away their beloved neighbor. Benio suddenly stepped forward and she put her hand toward the dead wolf, she closed her eyes when her body glows green.

" _I command thou to reveal thou true face, let thy true form of thou be known to the world!_ " Benio chanted.

The wolf glows green before it shrunk in size, it kept shrinking until it was the sized of a normal human and it turned into the dead body of Gin. Everyone gasped in shock, that shop owner was a wolf?! He was the one who killed Kiana?!

"What the hell am I seeing here…Gin, you're a wolf?" Ryan said to himself.

"Werewolves to be exact, these creatures were a human that was cursed to turn into it. The transformation must've happened recently, the wolves needed to feed themselves each night" Benio said.

"Every night? Now it makes sense how Rahn died…How did it turn someone into werewolves?" Mei asked Benio.

"Not everyone is capable on turning into them, the cursed one was those that was infected by the wolf's blood…It could spread if their blood got inside your body, accidently or intentionally" Benio explained.

Ryan nodded at Mei as they tore open Gin's clothes and inspect every inches of his dead body, even though the villagers were disgusted by it they knew it was necessary. Ryan and Mei found no trace of bite on Gin, they shook their head toward Benio.

"It was intentional then?" Mei asked Benio.

"Most likely…You said there were three of it right? There are two other werewolves among us then and it could be anyone. That being said, Ryan, Mei, Kallen, James, Siegfried and Agus were proven innocent…Each of us is a suspect until proven otherwise" Benio said.

"How could you prove that the wolves are among us?" Kallen asked Benio.

"I'm what you called a seer, I capable on revealing someone's true form. Though this can only be done three times a day, unless it's absolutely necessary then I won't use it" Benio said.

Fuuka focused her vision toward Han who was clutching his chest subtly among the crowd, red aura was emanating from his body. Her eyes widened before it hardened, he remembered that Siegfried said he managed to stab a werewolf with his blade on the chest.

"Han! Your aura reeks of evil!" Fuuka suddenly shouted.

Everyone gasped, James immediately manhandled Han as he protested before he was brought into the podium. Fuuka also went up and was closely guarded by Mei as she stared into Han, Cecilia decided to ask Fuuka on her hypothesis.

"Fuuka, I know you are capable on seeing someone's aura. Why would you say Han is evil?" Cecilia asked her.

"Yes I am, Han's aura was red and that means he is evil deep down or possessing evil drive within his heart. Either way, I remembered that Siegfried stabbed a werewolf on the chest and also the left hand was slightly deformed. You clutched your chest, your left arm was wounded, its all makes sense!" Fuuka said.

"Preposterous! That could be just some random coincidence! You can't just connect all of that loose fact toward me!" Han protested.

"But still, Fuuka's reading never fail. You possessed evil intentions Han, that couldn't be ignored. With the event's that befall our village, this cannot be overlooked"

"Lynch him!" "Yeah! We demand justice!" "You monster! You must be a werewolf!"

The villagers was angry, they would not listen to reason at all. Han started sweating heavily as the pressure grew on him, Ryan loaded two shell into his shotgun as a preparation. Cecilia lifted her left hand in the air and the crowd became silent once again. This would not go anywhere, they need to settle this with voting.

"Let's vote then…Those who said that Han would be executed?"

Everyone raised their hands, even Cecilia herself kept her hand raised. She looked around to confirm that everyone indeed raised their hands before she nodded, she looked at Ryan before nodding her head once again. The whole village agreed to execute Han as a suspected werewolf, Ryan then wasted no more time as he aimed his shotgun toward Han and squeezed the trigger. The gun erupted and Han died on the spot before his dead body went limp on top of the podium, Benio used her remaining spell to check the true form of Han and indeed Han turned into werewolf. The murmurs among the villagers were loud, the village was unsafe until every wolf died.

"He was truly a wolf" Ryan said.

"Thanks, Fuuka" Kallen said.

"Glad I could help…Sheriff Ryan, we may need magic and other supernatural power in the hunt for the last werewolf tonight" Fuuka suggested to Ryan.

"Alright…Then that means, Theresa, Benio and Bronya would be on standby with us tonight" Ryan said.

.

(Night Two)

.

They switched place this time, Ryan and James was on the courtyard patrolling all the way until the church area. They were in somber mood this night, after they went to rest in the afternoon they got reports that Agus passed away by dusk due to his injuries. Sakura and Himeko tried everything they could, but the wound was too deep. At least the guy died with smile on his face, truly a tough guy of the village.

"Rest in peace, Agus…Who would stocked us with wood from now on? Our lumberjack died" James said.

"Yeah, guess everyone would need to pick an axe tomorrow to get their own supply of wood…Hah, this last werewolf better show itself tonight" Ryan said.

"You heard what Benio said right? Werewolf goes hungry every night, there's no way they won't act. Though its not like they will die if they didn't eat for a day" James said.

"Right...It's almost midnight and there's still no sign of it" Ryan said uneasily.

Bronya was sleeping on Sheriff's office, she said that she will attempt to speak with the dead. She was guarded by Siegfried who was sitting in the front porch of the office, nursing his bandaged chest. Sakura said that he will be fine but another wound like this then he might die, he should just rest for tonight but there's no way he would when the village he lived in was in danger. He was checking on his blade when he heard a rustling of the bush behind the office, he walked a bit over the place and inspected it with his flashlight. Since he found nothing he walked back to his previous position, he was on alert now.

Mei went around the village being guarded by Kallen, she was checking on the people's house as investigation effort. The people in the village was mostly awake now, they were too scared to sleep in. Mei arrived on the church where she noticed Igor in sitting by the church's door.

"Father, it isn't safe for you to stay up in the open especially when there's werewolf on the loose" Mei said.

"I know I shouldn't, but I can't help but thinking, just today before dusk I spotted Victoria strolling around into the forest. Could she be a werewolf?" Igor asked himself.

"I don't know but you helped a lot, father. Please get inside, I will investigate for you" Mei said.

Mei grabbed Kallen's hand and she wasted no time dragging her toward Victoria's house, Mei knocked on the door twice and Victoria opened the front door. She's at home, so she was innocent. Victoria looked on her questioningly before she got an idea, she went back inside and wordlessly took out spare batteries for flashlight.

"You need this didn't you?" Victoria asked Mei.

"Err, not really but I'll take it. Thanks Victoria, stay inside your house okay?" Mei said to Victoria.

Victoria nodded her head, closed the door and locked it. Mei concluded that it was just a coincidence that Father Igor spotted her when Victoria went into the woods by dusk…She need to check something with Benio, Mei and Kallen then went toward Benio's house and knocked the door. She opened it, Benio was carrying a magical ball on her hands.

"Benio, there's something I want to ask you. What time, when a werewolf begun to change from a human and vice versa?" Mei asked her.

"By dusk they will transform into a werewolf and by dawn they will return as a human, that being said Momose seemed to fall asleep before dusk" Benio simply said.

"Then that means whoever was not in their house or present in the village tonight is a werewolf! How could something simple like this slipped my mind? Thanks Benio, you could return to your business now!" Mei said.

They wasted no time checking around the village. Everyone checked out for being awoke as patrol teams, except Theresa, Cecilia, Clair, Michael, Himeko and Sakura. Time was of the essence, Mei need to be quick. She went to Cecilia's house near the village courtyard, she was on her house sleeping until Mei came. Mei went to Clair's house, she wasn't answering but after a brief glance at her bedroom there's someone on it. She then next went toward Theresa's house, she was brewing some potions as she answered the door. That means only Michael left, they were making their way toward his house when they heard a crash somewhere near Clair's house.

"Oh no, could it be-" Kallen said.

"Let's go!" Mei said to Kallen.

But they were too late, Clair died after she was bitten by the werewolf. The werewolf then quickly run away to the forest, both Kallen and Mei didn't even had the chance to use their weapon as it was quite agile and elusive. They looked at Clair before Kallen somberly walked to find Ryan and reported on what happened to Clair.

.

(Night Two ended)

.

"Aw come on! Four people died already! Who is the last wolf!?" Siegfried asked the crowd.

The crowd's getting wild and started accusing at each other, suspicion and mistrust grew as more victim fell to the wolf's maw of death. Victoria sighed as she had enough of all this and she raised her hands to gain their attention.

"If anyone going to start accusing randomly, you might as well kill me. I could be one of those wolves" Victoria said nonchalantly.

The villagers was astonished, this was a dangerous situation to said such jokes and she just said it without care in the world. Does she wanted to die that much? Granted she was a crazy woman to begin with.

"No, we won't execute someone without proof. We are civilized people!" Cecilia said sternly.

"I managed to speak with Rahn" Bronya said suddenly.

"Whoa! This is our chance, what did you asked him about, Bronya?" Kallen asked Bronya.

"I asked how many wolves that attacked him, he said four" Bronya said.

"But Han was just turned two days ago…Huh, that means-" Mei said.

"There are five werewolves going around at night…Alright, desperate times call for desperate measures! Michael, where were you last night?" Ryan started interrogating everyone.

"Home, I was sleeping" Michael said.

"Sakura, you?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"Same, I was asleep" Sakura said casually.

"Himeko?" Ryan asked Himeko.

"Like Sakura did, I fell asleep" Himeko said as she walked to the crowd.

It was then Ryan noticed that Himeko walked a bit funny, she was dragging on her right feet a little. Ryan remembered something about his first encounter with the werewolf, he shot one in the right leg. As quickly as he noticed, Ryan immediately fired his double-barreled shotgun toward Himeko and she was caught unaware and died. Everyone was shocked, was Ryan started going insane that he would just kill random people now?!

"What the fuck, Ryan!?" Kallen exclaimed at Ryan.

But before she could talk further, Himeko's body morphed into that of a werewolf. The villager was horrified now, even the doctor's assistant could be a werewolf. They started looking at each other warily, no one knows the last two wolf and frankly it could be anybody.

"That took care of one…Two more to go! Fuuka, how about you see our aura?" Ryan asked Fuuka.

"I checked yours" Fuuka said.

"…What? Why me?!" Ryan was confused.

"I suspect you're going insane, Ryan. But yours colored green, you're a good man" Fuuka said.

"Glad to hear it, but still I was on the hunt for the last two days. You could check other people?" Ryan asked with half opened eyes.

"I've done it, don't worry. I checked on Michael. He's a wolf" Benio said.

Michael looked at Benio like she was crazy, the whole village attention suddenly turned on Michael. This was getting out of hand quickly, Mei raised her hand to prevent premature killing in case of Ryan who already had his gun out for the second time.

"Hold it! That is a serious accusation, could you back it up?" Mei asked her.

"I used my power last night" Benio said.

"Didn't you have to approach the said person to see it? And you were at home last night" Kallen asked Benio.

"I don't need to, I used the magic ball-"

" _Begone, spawn of darkness!_ " Igor suddenly said.

Igor took out a bottle of holy water and thrown it toward Michael. It exploded and doused the said young man soaking wet in holiness, nothing happened though instead it was Igor who died as he suddenly fell to the ground with loud thud. The whole village knew about this method, it was a deadly exorcism method that require the priest to use holy water and doused it into an evil spirit. But, if he abused this power then his life will forfeit as a punishment. In any case, they witnessed this before they looked at Benio who was sweating bullets as her vision was wrong.

"Well, that was awkward" Siegfried commented.

"You sly little minx, you pretend to be on our side but you were helping the wolves!?" James said.

"Strange, maybe my power is malfunctioning?" Benio said.

"I will be honest, I'm the real seer! She kept me hostage for two days already! She's a werewolf!" Momose, Benio's apprentice said.

"Presposterous! Momose, you accused me of such things! You are the real werewolf, I knew it!" Benio said to Momose.

"Benio, you lied and I say we execute you! Who agrees!?" Siegfried asked the crowd.

The crowd went wild as everyone agreed for Benio to be executed. Mei shook her head toward Ryan who nodded his head then held his gun high, that was before he used the remaining bullet on his gun and shot it toward Momose. Her face shown shock as she went limp on the ground and died, suddenly her body morphed into a werewolf but it had some kind of necklace and ornaments around the head. Both had known that Momose was awfully suspicious from the start, she had not been contributing to the defense of the village in any way. Benio checked the ornaments and she recognized its marking.

"…She's a werewolf shaman!" Benio said.

"What's that?" Mei asked Benio.

"A werewolf with the ability to enchant someone's aura and appearance, she casted it on Michael so he could become the scapegoat! No wonder my reading said so!" Benio said.

"Okay, that leaves Theresa, Victoria and Cecilia as the remaining suspect…Tonight, we'll see on who's the last wolf" Ryan said.

.

(Night Three)

.

To avoid the next murder, everyone was rounded up on the church for protection with Ryan being on guard in the church front door while Mei and James patrolled the side area of the church. Way past midnight, Siegfried yawned as he waited in the church back area that also consisted of cemetery. He already walked through this area a hundred times and still see no sign of any wolf.

"But then again, being bored out of my mind like this was the usual whenever I guarded Cecilia" Siegfried said to himself.

Siegfried then saw a blur of black passing through his peripheral vision but he paid no heed to it, it was not his problem to investigate. Unknown to him though, he's about to become a werewolf's next meal as the wolf stealth sprinted towards him and pounced upon him. That would be the case if not for an arrow suddenly pierced it's back and Siegfried rolled out of the way, he reached for a net that he hid behind a gravestone and casted it upon the downed wolf.

The church bell was ringed by Kallen, who after managed to shot the beast from the church tower then gave the signal that the last wolf was founded. Everyone gathered in the backyard and they finally found the last wolf by indicating the missing person among them, it was Cecilia herself that was missing. The villagers were all sighed in relief with the last werewolf founded, it still struggled but being encased with the net was too hard for her to move freely.

"Yeah, so Cecilia was the last wolf" Ryan said.

"Cleverly played, the village head herself was the predator" Theresa said.

"Really, planning this behind her back was quite hard too" Siegfried said to Ryan.

"How did you know it was Miss Cecilia, Mei-senpai?" Bronya asked Mei.

"The only person she defends during the village assembly was Victoria, if we executed her then we would execute a fool…The wolves are willing to sacrifice one of their own in effort to win" Mei said.

"Harsh but effective, huh this has been a long game" Siegfried said.

"Game is concluded, The Villagers wins!" Unknown woman voice suddenly spoken from the sky.

Suddenly, the world around them distorted as the sky collapsed and revealing white blank area and the ground and building around them was torn apart into bits and pieces before everyone's vision turned black…Ryan took off the Virtual Reality Engine Projector helmet from his head and he woke up seeing the villagers were in spacious room filled with multiple machinery and bed. The white walls immediately became an indicator that they were on Saint Freya Academy Medical wing. Ryan looked around and see that the bed occupant sat up as they removed the helmet from their head and took in the room around before they shown mixed reaction.

"Aw come on! We were so close!" Han said as he stretched his body.

"Yeah, they can't be underestimated" Cecilia said as she drank bottled water.

"You're quite sly, darling. You're the last one that manage to elude us" Siegfried said as he sat beside Cecilia.

"What did I tell you, dear? I'm a versatile woman" Cecilia said while smiling.

"That was quite traumatizing! Being bitten by a werewolf! I don't want to experience that again! I was lucky it wasn't mom, or I could never looked at her the same again…" Kiana said as she hugged her knees.

"Lucky for me I was asleep when it happened" Clair said while smiling and comforting Kiana.

"I got no chance to show what I can do!" Theresa sighed and complained.

"You all shouldn't complain! I died before day one! Seriously, I think it was Gin that killed me!" Rahn said as he looked at Gin.

"Yeah it was my idea, how does it feel to be a spectator in your first VR game!?" Gin said while smiling.

"I knew it was you, piece of shit!" Rahn said.

"Alright who bit my stomach? I want to talk to you about letting your prey live and suffer!" Agus asked around.

"It was Han, Agus. Go talk to him!" Fuuka said casually.

"Han! We need to talk!" Agus said as he approached Han.

"Your action was quite reckless, lieutenant" Michael said to Igor.

"I want to finish the game as soon as I could" Igor said while shrugging.

"And I almost caused friendly fire accident with that wrong reading" Benio said while cringing.

"Yeah well, it didn't happen because Igor proving me innocent" Michael said.

"But seriously, the gunner role suited you Ryan-kun. Perfectly" Mei said to Ryan.

"Ryan was the one contributed with killing the most people outside the werewolves" Bronya said.

"Errr yeah that's so right, Bronya. I admit it was quite comforting to possess a shotgun in the fight against those beasts. Kallen as a hunter wasn't so bad, how do you use that bow efficiently?" Ryan said as he smiled a bit.

"Just luck factor, I haven't even used a bow in real life" Kallen said.

"Ryan! You are forbidden to shoot someone without warning next time we play this! You almost gave me a heart attack!" Himeko scolded Ryan.

"My bad! It won't happen again!" Ryan said while cringing.

"I can vouch instructor Himeko's complain, seriously Ryan-kun you're quite brutal!" Momose said while pouting.

"Yeah, sorry about that Momose" Ryan said with apologetic smile.

"Ugh, failed to get the village to lynch me. The fool's role didn't suit me at all" Victoria said somberly.

"I can't believe instructor Himeko was so close to ending my life every night, I lived with a werewolf" Sakura said while hugging her left arm.

"Alright, can I have your attention please? The console on the bed stand to your bed has a tablet on it with questionnaire regarding your experience, thoughts and advice on the game. Thank you for testing the game today, we would schedule another one soon so please fill out the form if you want to participate once again" A lady wearing white lab coat said to them from the end of the room.

The said lady watched as she concluded her analysis of the game progress, she noticed that everyone was taking their role playing seriously. Even went as far to create small background when they were in game, granted this virtual reality werewolf game still need few patches and updates but the result was quite satisfying with immersive graphic, realistic atmosphere conditioning and realistic physics. This test conducted today provided lot of data for Schicksal in developing their virtual reality technology.

The test subjects put down the tablet and one by one walked out of the room after bidding her the overseer of the session goodbye, she waved back and smiled politely as the room cleared out. She took her time reading each response from everyone, it was mix results mostly. Some commented about the scenery, some commented about the game system while others more concerned if they could produce another VR game? One thing that was common among them though, they were willing to do this again in the future when Schicksal ready for another test like this.

* * *

 **The character's role on Schicksal Werewolves Game**

 **Agus (Tough Guy): The tough guy of the village but didn't possess enough training in combat. If he's attacked by the wolf, the guy is capable surviving until dusk by the next day.**

 **Benio (Seer): The character with ability so see through someone's true form, if what she see wasn't a wolf then their working outfit will be the one they saw instead.**

 **Bronya (Medium): Character that could speak with the dead although the dead could only heard the medium's voice, it also possess a power to revive a dead person once during the game session.**

 **Cecilia (Werewolf): The objective was to kill all the humans in the village.**

 **Clair (Villager): Ordinary villager, their objective is to survive the werewolves attack.**

 **Fuuka (Aura Seer): Capable on seeing someone's affiliation judging from the aura they** **emitted** **. Green, ally. Yellow, unknown. Red, evil.**

 **Gin (Werewolf): The objective was to kill all the humans in the village.**

 **Han (Cursed): A normal villager until bitten by a werewolf, then the cursed will turn at night into werewolf and affiliated with them.**

 **Himeko (Alpha Werewolf): Leader of the pack, stronger than average werewolf when transformed.**

 **Igor (Priest): They are capable using holy water to perform exorcism, if they hit a werewolf with it then the werewolf will die. But if they hit someone other than werewolf, they will die instead.**

 **James (Jailer): Could put someone in the prison for a night, they were free to be interrogated or killed if the jailer found them suspicious. Possessed a gun that could be used in self defense or execution.**

 **Kallen (Beast Hunter): Capable laying ambush or trap in order to catch the werewolves, skilled combatant with a bow.**

 **Kiana (Villager): Ordinary villager, their objective is to survive the werewolves attack.**

 **Mei (Detective): Has the role to uncover the truth and roles of the villagers by asking around, capable of self defense with a handgun though the detective would easily die if attacked by a werewolf.**

 **Michael (Villager):** **Ordinary villager, their objective is to survive the werewolves attack.**

 **Momose (Wolf Shaman): Capable enchanting someone to be seen as a wolf by seer and aura seer, they will lose the ability if they're the last werewolf in the game.**

 **Rahn (Bounty Hunter): Get their assigned target to be lynched by the village, the bounty hunter automatically win if their target died so. They become normal villager if their target died with another way.**

 **Ryan (Sheriff Gunner): Possessing a gun that could be used in self defense or hunting werewolves, everyone immediately knew who they are and the most lethal threat to the wolf as they are capable in killing them with ease. They weren't tough however and could easily die if attacked, their gun is unusable when they died.**

 **Siegfried (Bodyguard): The strongest villager character in the game, armed with a family heirloom sword that could be used in self defense or for protecting someone. They will be able to survive even the harshest attack by the wolves for the first time but they will die if attacked for the second time, their sword deal a huge damage against a wolf.**

 **Theresa (Witch): A villager that possessed two** **potions, one could be used to protect someone while the other capable in killing someone. The potion is limited in number so they need to used it wisely as they cannot reproduce the potions.**

 **Victoria (Fool): Their goal is to get lynched by the village, they automatically win if the village executed them during village assembly.**


	6. Recollection and resolve

Yeah, so I wrote this story on my phone and god it was quite hard. I really prefer to type on computer instead on phone, so my apologies for the lateness of Chapter Four. Really hope I could return typing on a laptop or computer soon, it's more comfortable and allow me to type faster too...Well looks like I ended up ranting, just get on to the stories guys. Be advised, this fic may hit M rating soon with how the story goes so you have been warned from now. Plus, my apologies for the messy writing if you encounter it.

* * *

Ryan walked in the densely populated City of Soukai, it was hot Saturday morning and the streets were crowded by pedestrian and vehicles. He wore dark blue denim jacket with white t-shirt underneath it, black jeans and black and white sneakers, he also had sun glasses on his face for UV alert from his phone said it was past level 5. Despite that, Ryan kept walking in the open aimlessly, he didn't care where he will end up on as long he able to stay outdoors. The reason for that perfectly came two days ago when Victor suddenly arrived in front of his doorstep in the middle of the night.

Victor gave him a file regarding his mother, Aurora. Ryan's mother was an ex-Schicksal personnel that served within the organization since her teenage years. At the age of twenty one, she married his father and soon they had him in the family. Shit happens when Second Honkai Impact struck on Eastern Europe and both of his parent had to combat the rapidly rising Honkai threat. Now he knew that his father was a Schicksal's knight and his mother was an operator on Schicksal Forward Base at the time. Can anybody guess what happened next? Yeah, things went south pretty quickly and when disaster about to struck the forward base, Aurora was not on her station. Like she had been told of the incoming disaster.

But his mother wasn't that high ranked personnel so her dissapearance was considered non essential matter by Schicksal High Command. The part that made Ryan question everything was, it appeared his mother was accused to be the one responsible for that disaster that Schicksal dubbed as 'Incident S-452' which involved the hacking of Schicksal Honkai Energy Generator to explode when the base was under siege by Honkai creatures. When he learned of that part on the file, he immediately knew that there's no way his mother capable doing something that heartless. She was the nicest and the most friendly person he ever knew, maybe there was some other reason on why would she be absent on that particular day?

He may had vowed to never fully trust Schicksal but that didn't mean the information they gave wasn't solid. In fact, Schicksal was known for its reliable Intel gathering and information warfare, if they can't do that then they won't held a huge amount of control within United Nations and possessed direct influence within some states. With his mind a mess, he wasn't able to do anything productive the entire day and he opted for walking outside despite the weather emphasized on 'Stay in shades!' for today. Ryan checked his wristwatch where he noticed that he's only been outside for half an hour, How the hell he supposed to waste his entire time on Saturday? Surely there's something he could do? For now though, he decided to visit a vending machine on the park where he opted for some nice, cold cola. He won't drink alcohol outside on his own for with his strength and skill he would cause a lot of trouble if he went overboard.

Ryan found set of benches under a roof in the park, there's a couple seating over there and Ryan was about to turn tail until he stared the guy eye to eye. Black hair, blue eyes, caucasian features, impossibly stoic face with a hint of shock on it stared back at him, Ryan knew the young man as he was Igor Kamarov. Meeting friends outside by chance on day off wasn't that strange, what was strange was when you seen the most stoic guy in your year with a pretty red haired girl, soft green eyes, nice figure clinging on him with her head rested on his shoulder. That guy said he wasn't interested in dating! What changed within the two weeks since that declaration?!

"This can't be true..." Ryan said.

"Cyka..." Igor suddenly said.

"Huh? What's the matter, dear?" The girl asked Igor.

"My commander is in front of us" Igor said.

The woman looked ahead and saw Ryan stared at Igor with his most convincing questioning expression he ever mustered in his life, Igor knew he was screwed when he saw that look and he opted for the simple way out. He braced himself to be interrogated...Last time he did this was when his base got raided and he was shot by a Valkyrie, and he was sure he's at least guaranteed to be spared of any further questioning after he gave them what they wanted.

"Igor, I need some explanation here" Ryan said.

"Since you caught me, might as well tell you what was going on...This girl is Adrianna Kamarov, she's my wife" Igor said.

Igor was an 18 years old guy, the legal age for marriage on Soukai was 16 so it wasn't something unheard of when a young couple was married in such young age. The world was fucked, human population declined rapidly annually due to the fight against Honkai beasts, it made perfect sense for a regulation to marry and have a child as early as possible to be passed on to the society at large. Most people at least waited until they graduated from high school however, it seemed that wasn't the case with Igor. Ryan glanced on both of their hands and found matching rings worn on their's, he wasn't making things up.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Adrianna. I'm Ryan Taurus, I assume you knew on your husband's involvement with Schicksal?" Ryan asked Adrianna.

"Nice to meet you too, please no need to be so formal...Yes, I'm aware regarding my husband's involvement with Project Asgard...I'm a former A rank Valkyrie , I have heard about it" Adrianna said while smilling.

"Well that spared the long explanation. Congratulations on your marriage, when Igor said that he wasn't interested in dating, I didn't expected to mean that he was already married. I'm sure you had your reason for not telling us, Igor" Ryan said.

"Actually, I was planning to tell you by the end of the month...Our circumstances was a bit difficult, Adrianna here could no longer fight in the frontline, so she was discharged from Schicksal and now works from home. The reason I kept this a secret was because her parents was among the Schicksal higher ups on headquarters...If they found out where she was now, there's no doubt they will force her to work on Schicksal HQ unwillingly. Our relationship with them...wasn't the best" Igor confessed on their circumstances.

"So...runaway marriage?" Ryan asked Igor.

"Yeah, kind of...I was already offered to join as a Viking when we moved here. The rest was only to figure out in how to hide her and our relationship" Igor said.

"I see, it's understandable. Took a lot of effort to maintain your love for each other, I'm not going to ruin it...You're secret is safe with me. If you need help, call it" Ryan said to Igor.

"Thank you tovarisch, I appreciated it" Igor said with a hint of smile on his face.

"Also..."

Ryan suddenly walked forward, approached Igor and suddenly hit him right in the forehead. The act surprised both Igor and Adrianna, why the hell would Ryan suddenly hit Igor for no apparent reason?

"Hey, what gives?! Are you alright, dear?" Adrianna said.

"That serves as a warning Igor, if I had known you were married earlier, that mock battle would not end with you being hospitalized for days! Seriously, you have a wife waiting at home! Do not pull that kind of stunt again in the future, got it?" Ryan sternly warned Igor.

"I see...Yes, it was my fault...Though, the same could be said to you, Ryan...Your men needs you, don't ever consider yourself expendable" Igor said while smiling a bit.

"My unit, my rules...But, I'll take your word Igor. Let's do our best" Ryan said while smiling.

"Yes, let's" Igor nodded his head.

"Well, I'm going have to leave you both now. Pretty sure I just interruped a date, I'll go somewhere else...See you, Igor, Adrianna" Ryan said as he walked away.

"Sure" "Until we meet again, Ryan"

Only nodding his head then smiling, Ryan left the area while smiling to himself of the things that happened today. He was genuinely happy for his lieutenant. He managed to land in marriage with a beautiful and considerate girl, Igor would definitely need someone like her on his life with his stoic personality. She's an ex-Valkyrie too, A rank no less so she was definitely knew how to fight if things get rough. As Ryan walked away from them, Adrianna looked at Igor who in turn also looked back at her with questioning eyes directed at her.

"So he's the man you speak of when you mention 'The hard bastard that I'm willing to follow to hell and back again' just after you went home from being hospitalized" Adrianna said with a smug smile.

"Yes...you know the story already, he's the first one that didn't judge me from my past as a terrorist...He's the one who entrusted me with the killing blow on our first battle, he leads with confidence, he treated his men like comrades, he backed up his big words with skills...If I fight against him, I would probably lose most of the time" Igor said to Adrianna.

"He's that good, huh?" Adriana said as she watched Ryan walked away.

"Surviving a literall dead zone with a missing dominant arm, he's the luckiest and the toughest guy I ever knew" Igor said while smiling a bit.

"...That surely proved your statement...Well, it's almost noon. What do you say we grab a lunch?" Adrianna asked Igor.

"There's this new restaurant near the outskirt that I'd like to try" Igor said while looking at Adrianna.

"Let's go there then, dear" Adrianna said while grinning.

.

Sakura was coming home from her part time work on the outskirt area of Soukai, she currently worked as an employee on small clinic that runned by an elderly woman. Sakura had been learning traditional medicine since she was a little child and by the time she went to junior high school, there's not much her mother could teach her left. It proved instrumental in her duty on infirmary and working in the private clinic, she particularly enjoyed her part time work for that elderly woman was friendly and easy to talk to so she never felt pressured when she works there. Though for today, the clinic would close early for the woman had to visit her granddaughter near the suburbs so she was told to go home earlier.

Now Sakura had nothing to do at the apartment, no one will be there too as Kallen was currently helping the Schicksal Science Division on testing a protoype gun that would soon be issued to the girls who fought with handguns. Since she got nothing to do at home, she might as well stroll around the downtown. It's been a while since she just casually exploring the city by herself. She waited on the bus stop for quite a bit when a bus arrived, she got in and found only one seat free in the back. She walked over and proceed to sat there and the bus immediately started moving again. She checked her phone because she received a message from her sister, Rin who told her about this guy that recently started showing interest on her.

Sakura smiled as she replied the message on Line, it was good for her sister since Sakura never experienced that during her years on junior high. It's either training or homework that took most of her time. She rested her head on the seat after she put her phone back on her hand bag. She looked to the left to see where was she when she noticed her seat neighbor. He was Ryan freaking Taurus that was sitting on her left side and she couldn't helped herself to gasp in surprise when she saw him. He was sitting there, head resting on the window with earphone on his ears, he looked like he had a lot on his mind...Now Sakura actually asked herself whether she lived on some cliche shoujo manga storyline, what was the chance you met your neighbor outside and actually got to sit right next to each other?!

"Haruka naru shirabe, aoi hoshi no hikari. Tada daremo ga koi wo shite. Tada hitotsu no, miraii no tameni. Ima no subete, kanade te iru. Kimi ga yume miru nara, soba ni tatte onaji kanatae te wo nobasu yo. Kimi ga shiinjita, shizuka no sora ni. Itsuka boku mo, todo kudarou. Doko made mo, mabushii, heavenly blue"

"Wait, this song. Heavenly Blue?" Sakura blurted out.

Ryan jumped a bit when he realized he had been singing alongside the song that was on his playlist. He looked to the right and saw Sakura looked at him.

"S-Sakura!? You're here the entire time? Why don't you say anything!?" Ryan was blushing for a bit in embarrassment.

"Fufufufu, I was hearing you singing for a bit Ryan. Though I also was quite surprised to see you sat beside me too, I wasn't paying that much attention" Sakura said after giggling.

"Is that so, what a coincidence...going somewhere?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"No end destination for now, just going around...how about you?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"Same, got nothing to do too...how about we stick together and see if we could enjoy this Saturday afternoon?" Ryan asked Sakura while smiling.

"Let's do that" Sakura said.

Sakura smiled but that didn't last long before she jerked and straighten her posture on the seat with one little conclusion on her head...Is this what people called 'Impromptu date'? She looked at Ryan who was back in messing with his phone, she curiously looked on the screen and saw someone named Vic telling him that he will be going back. Ryan only responded with short message and he turn his phone screen off and stored it on his jacket's chest pocket. He looked outside and saw several people conversing with each other, he then looked back toward Sakura who also followed on what was he seeing before.

"Hey Sakura" Ryan suddenly called her.

"Yes?" Sakura's head perked up.

"Can I ask you something?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"Sure, go ahead" Sakura nodded her head.

"Are you from Southern Japan?" Ryan asked while looking at her.

"Why yes...My accent was that noticeable?" Sakura asked while her head tilted to the left for a bit.

"Not really, you spoke like those that lived on Kyoto...Few times I've heard you pronounce few words in Japanese that could usually only spoken by those from the south. That's what gave it away" Ryan said.

Ryan had heard Sakura, Mei, Bronya, Himeko, Fuuka or even Kiana spoke Japanese before and Sakura was the one that had notable accent and sometimes spoke in Kansai Dialect. He concluded that she came from Southern Japan, very likely to encountered the invading Honkai beasts too.

"Oh is that so, guess I do speak with Kansai dialect sometimes...I speak english most of the time since I came to Soukai" Sakura said while smiling somberly.

"Can't be helped, people came from all over the region on this city...English is mandatory. The world was running out of safe havens I guess" Ryan said while lookong outside the window.

"You seems to have a lot in mind" Sakura asked him.

The truth had been spoken, safe havens were the rarest place that available on Earth these days. Even some of the big cities were not considered safe due to frequent Honkai energy eruptions that could spawn beasts which would then begun attacking indiscriminately, it will quickly became a major headache for the local army or Valkyries. The places categorized as safe heavens were the place where Honkai eruption were the rarest or lowest in chance of happening, so far the scientist had not found the exact variables and criteria on what really trigerred an eruption but there were few places that fit to be safe heaven.

For example, Soukai was among the places that could be categorized as safe heaven. Not many incidents where Honkai energy eruption or leak happened, it's a heavily fortified place by Valkyries and it had a lot of defenses asset in case of incident. To put it bluntly, the city itself was a fortress capable of self defense for a bit before reinforcement arrives. But not all safe heavens could withstood the might of Honkai as even some of them had fallen in this decade alone.

Ryan was actually thinking on something regarding his past, especially the whole mess with his family. What would happen had if his parents made different choice back then, would they live happily as a family even now?

"What would you do, to prevent yourself for making the mistake you did in the past, Sakura? What cost would you sacrifice?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"It's relative for each person, I believe so. For me, I wouldn't change it for it shaped me into who I am today. I learned so much and changing it might not be a wise decision" Sakura said as she looked at Ryan.

"I see...you said something that simple yet so deep at the same time" Ryan said while smiling.

Ryan was about to continue talking before his stomach launched a protest because it was empty with no breakfast, he facepalmed because heck he forgot to eat anything before he left the apartment. Sakura was shaking her head in disapproval at Ryan's situation, he better not make skipping as meal a habit.

"Ah...did you skip on meals again Ryan? As far as I knew now you got money to feed yourself" Sakura said while frowning.

"I forgot to eat breakfast today hahaha...Let's go eat?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"KFC is nearby, shall we go there?" Sakura pointed to a KFC restaurant nearby.

"Okay, let's go" Ryan said as they prepare to get off the bus.

Kiana had been standing behind the counter for hours already, serving customers that came unto the restaurant. Yeah, busy Saturday she guessed. She checked her wristwatch and saw that she had to stay for another two hours before she could go home, that's still a long time to waste by serving customers. She then saw someone familiar entering the restaurant and she won't have to guess who it was, she was about to greet him while smiling when she spotted the girl beside him...So, Ryan and Sakura? Both together on their day off? What was that, a date?!

"Sakura? Ryan? What are you doing here?" Kiana asked both of them.

"...Wanting to eat obviously" Sakura answered with her eyes half closed.

"Hey Kiana, fancy meeting you...So this is where you work huh?" Ryan asked Kiana while smiling.

"Y-Yeah, on weekends you could find me here sometimes...Now, what would you like to order?" Kiana asked them both.

"That Combo number one" Ryan said to Kiana.

"I would like that Twister roll, french fries and medium soda" Sakura said to Kiana.

"Right...that would be 37 credits. You do have the money, didn't you?" Kiana asked Ryan with suspicion on her eyes.

"Hey now, that was one time only!" Ryan said while averting his eyes.

A bit of a story from yesterday, this wasn't the first time Ryan was outside for most of the day as he also did this yesterday. Though, god decided to pull a prank on him. He was shopping for some beer yesterday, god knew he need the drink after seeing what was inside that file. He was making his way toward the counter to pay for the stuff when he noticed that his wallet and phone was left back at his apartment...No credit chips, no phone electronic billing, the cashier looked at him sympathetic with his condition. All of a sudden, Kiana came from his back and put down a credit chip on the desk.

Ryan was surprised by the act, he thanked Kiana for saving his skin. Kiana was about to reply when she spotted the item that Ryan bought. Canned Jack Daniels, Kiana's faced Ryan with obvious questioning gaze when she saw that Ryan only averted his eyes. That told her with the fact that Ryan didn't want to talk about it and he was hiding it, Kiana somberly smiled as she paid for her stuff then walked out with Ryan. She told him last night that whatever was plaguing him, she hoped that he will found the way out soon. She smiled as she walked back to her home which turned out only two houses away from the convenience store, she looked back to saw Ryan smiled bitterly back at her, with downcasted eyes then left.

Now Ryan was feeling like an asshole and here's the cause, it turns out he met Kiana before he went to Saint Freya Academy. That file specified that apparently he was sent to Schicksal shelther on Central Europe when the war started, another girl was sent alongside him and her name was Kiana Kaslana. They were put on the same bed chamber even, surely he interacted with her...Now, he didn't remember a single fucking thing regarding meeting her and Kiana was not acting that familiar with him...Oh wait, he remembered her calling his name even though he haven't introduced himself back on the first day of school for him. One glance at her and her expression changed, she then smiled as she said she was lucky in guessing his name and introduced herself.

Even further reason for him being in the dumps, he struggled hard to smile at Kiana when he accidentally met her for today...But he knew he should talk about this to her sooner or later. The order arrived for Ryan and Sakura then both took it, Ryan smiled at Kiana before he went to find a seat while Sakura stayed for a bit.

"This wasn't a date, right?" Kiana asked Sakura.

"N-No, what are you saying, Kiana?! Me and him just went here to eat as friends!" Sakura said with bit of a blush.

"Haha, I'm just messing with you. Enjoy your meals, Sakura" Kiana said while grinning.

Sakura pouted before she smiled then she joined Ryan on the seat he found in the far corner near the windows, Kiana smiled bitterly before she called someone to take her post for a bit. She need to go to the restroom, as soon as she entered the restroom she sighed heavily, she wasn't ready for this emotional rollercoaster. Kiana reminisced last night event for the tenth time that day, as soon as she saw him bought alcohol she knew it must be something troubling for the guy. She confirmed her suspicion when he averted his eyes away from her, that was the sign he was uncomfortable and didn't wish to talk on what was bothering him. Yeah, not everyone could be honest with everything. You must have some secrets that you want to take to your grave sometimes.

As soon as Kiana reached her house, she immediately went straight to her room after briefly greeting Siegfried and Cecilia on the living room. She closed her bedroom door, she threw the bag filled with snacks on her study and she plopped herself onto her bed. She laid sideways while hugging her bolster, her eyes half closed as she sulked in bed...They were childhood friends, both Ryan and her and every year Ryan would visited and spend his time alongside her whenever their parents meet up or they went on mission together. Four seasons, spent alongside the boy that was the definition of her crush was the best six years of her childhood days.

Second Honkai Impact struck and the entire Kaslana family went to defend humanity against the relentless Honkai beast, Ryan and her was taken to Central Europe Schicksal Shelther while Kallen was sent to the Western Europe one. There in the cold shelther that constantly went under attack, in the absence of their parents he was the anchor that prevented her from breaking down in distress and fear. He was awfully brave for a seven years old brat, he accompanied her to wherever she went and she wouldn't have it any other way.

One night, in the peak of the fight against Honkai. The shelther was struck by a stray Ganesha Class Honkai Beast, it was everyone s worst nightmare came to life and the entire shelther was told to be evacuated. Ryan and her was together as they tried making their way to the evacuating dropships when one dropship was struck down by a laser beam coming from the beast. Kiana was promptly thrown by Ryan on to the last dropship, Kiana was mad and yelled at Ryan to board the dropship with her. Ryan convinced her that he will board the next one, he promised that they will meet again later after this was all over. Kiana smiled in determination, she needed to be strong for this time Ryan would be separated from her for a while. She made it to the Western Europe shelther where she was reunited with Kallen, she waited for Ryan by spending most of her time on the dropship landing pad...but, Ryan never showed up.

She waited, and waited and waited but Ryan was not coming. For a while, she was angry at him and vowed to beat him up when they reunite for making her worry. But years passed by and that anger turned into frustration as he never showed up in front of her when her parent's did. She asked them about him but even the both of them didn't knew where he was. Though they comforted her, she should have more faith on him. There will be a time when he will return to her. She waited as long as she could but her parents had to move to Japan during her junior high school years. She was sulking on the entire trip, though Cecilia and Siegfried didn't really berated her for it. They knew why.

There she met with met her best friends, Mei and Bronya. She was struggling for a bit when she came over to Japan for the first time as she was not familiar with its customs and languages. Though Mei and Bronya helper her a lot, they became one of the few friends she treasured greatly so when Southern Japan invasion happened she was worried that they will gone just like Ryan did in the past. This time though, she was a Valkyrie trainee and fuck fate as she will even defy it to make sure her friends were safe.

She was successful but at the cost they had to move to Soukai as their house was smashed by an Emperor Class Honkai Beast when it died, but eh it won't be so bad as her best friends also moved with her. They entered the same academy, met Kallen once again alongside Sakura and Fuuka then they immediately became the Top Guns in first year. Kiana never lose hope for a bit, she even went as far to double checked someone's face for those that had green hair in the streets but she still didn't find him, but god took pity on her then gave her the chance to meet with him once more.

As soon she heard the name Ryan Taurus in the list of the new Experimental Viking Assault Unit, her heart swelled in happiness and relief. He was alive! She went to greet him, but she stopped herself after she called his name. He did looked at her, but he looked at her as if she's a stranger. Kiana inspected him whether he was really Ryan Taurus, it was indeed him. His green emerald hair was longer and spiky, his eyes was somehow now crimson red, gone was that wide eyed innocent face and instead replaced by the serious looking mature face. She then noticed his right hand and she had to witheld her gasp, half of his right arm was missing! When did he lose it? All sort of questions popped in her head but she put it aside in favor of introducing herself. She need to keep up with facade while learning on what the hell was going on. She didn't ate dinner that night, she was spending her night crying until she fell asleep.

The longer she interacted with him the further she understand that he wasn't pulling some kind of cruel joke at her, he was genuinely forgot about her. Cecilia and Siegfried eventually found out about him, she was questioned when she got home but she only fired off a warning shot that she didn't want to talk about it yet and went to her room. Dinner was awkward to say the least...The same thing happened last night, she knew he had some problems and she's dying to help him but how? It won't end well when he didn't remember a single thing about her, she was a classmate at best and stranger at worst. Kiana went to sleep, with her snacks forgotten and single drop of tears rolled on her cheeks. The longer she acted like a stranger, the more painful it gets.

Back at Ryan and Sakura, both were eating their meals silently. Ryan was internally sighing, he was not ready to face Kiana yet after that revealation about her. So when he met her here, he pulled all the stops for self control in order not to act awkwardly in front of her. Ryan was eating calmly when he got a message from Bronya on his Line, his eyes widen when she told him to order a lunch set to be delivered into the dorm that she and Mei share. Ryan waste no time as he dialled Bronya in a call and it was picked up in two seconds.

"Da, this is Bronya" Bronya answered on her usual flat tone.

"How the hell did you knew that I'm on KFC?!" Ryan asked her.

"Don't worry, just a small tracker installed on Ryan's phone. Its so Bronya could help if Ryan ever get into trouble" Bronya answered.

"Yeah, maybe next time you could ask for permission from me first!" Ryan said sarcastically.

"Bronya understood, Bronya would ask if Bronya need to tamper with Ryan's phone in the future" Bronya said.

"Thank you...You said lunch pack right?" Ryan asked her.

"Da, do that and Bronya would keep the fact that Ryan looked into some adult magazines filled with models wearing school uniform and tight black stockings a secret" Bronye immediately hanged up.

Ryan's mouth was left agape after Bronya ended the call, he was careless piece of shit! Did he actually opened that link that Rahn share on the Viking's group chat as 'token of friendship' without incognito mode? What a dumb fuck! Now Bronya had an ace on her sleeve when he had to negotiate with her, he was in luck that she didn't get through his search history on his PC. He would die in embarrasment if she found what was he looked at on that PC of his, he made a mental note to go home straight and delete his browser history!

"I need to be more careful, Bronya planted a bug on me!" Ryan said to himself.

"Not the first time, she did that to all of us...I didn't understand what was a bug until Kallen told me, I wasn't amused for a while...But Mei said that it was a sign that Bronya actually cared, so I was fine with it in the end" Sakura said while smiling.

"Huh sure, charming. But I valued my privacy thank you very much!" Ryan said with half closed eyes.

Sakura giggled as Ryan continue eating his chicken, he then looked outside to saw someone wearing leather jacket and jeans with blonde hair and green eyes looking at him. Ryan temporarily ignored him when he noticed one thing, that guy wasn't just staring at him he also noted waved at him, Ryan went back to check on him only to see him smiled then dissapeared in the blink of an eye when a bus pass through between them...So Vic was right, someone indeed want to meet him...He's now 100% sure that some shit was about to go down.

.

Monday, days had passed by and now the class was noisy with chatter and everyone was spending their time on class in complete freedom for the teacher's had a sudden assembly. It was raining heavily outside and everyone was spread around classroom. Kiana and Mei was talking about some new show that aired on TV last night, Bronya was grinding her character on a mobile rpg game, Kallen was munching on bubblegum while she watched an anime on her phone, Sakura was reading a romance light novel, Fuuka was writing reports for student council, Gin and Igor listened to Han who told them regarding a theory on 'Optimal stealth infiltration', Rahn was chuckling because he opened Youtube and stumbled upon a stand up comedy show, James was talking to Momose about the new shipment of weaponry that Saint Freya received, Agus was talking to Charlotte about sniping while Michael teached Benio something about coding set for setting up some kind of military grade firewall.

In all of those noisiness, only Ryan who was fallen asleep on his seat. The auditorium styled classroom had joined seats so it provided him with a lot of space to lay down on his back and shut his eyes. He made that bad decision everyone did once in a while which was gaming until three in the morning so he almost cried in relief that the teacher had a sudden assembly, he could finally shut his eyes for some quality nap. He had decided that he will talk about his issue with Kiana, perhaps later when on lunch break?

"What's with him?" Han asked Gin after he finished his lecture.

"Who, Ryan?" Gin asked Han back.

"Well yeah, did you see how was he for weeks? Dude looked like had a lot in mind, he's okay?" Han asked Gin.

"He didn't tell me anything regarding what was troubling him, I'm sure he'll come around" Gin said to Han.

As if he was called, Ryan woke up from his nap and saw that Gin and Han was looking at him. Ryan's eyebrows was raised but he shrugged them off when he saw nothing suspicious. He checked his phone and when he saw nothing was on it, he put it back on his pocket before he sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"Good nap I take it?" Han asked Ryan.

"Kind of" Ryan answered shortly.

Mei who was seated behind Ryan tried opening bottled milk when it squeezed out of the bottle by her hands accidently and landed on top of Ryan's head, it immediately jolted Ryan awake as the milk smeared his head. Mei was blushing at her error, its been so long since she caused an accident and this one happened to be a boy that was her unfortunate victim. Ryan looked back at Mei with half closed eyes, sure they were friends but this prompted to looked at Mei with 'why?' written all over his face. Mei who can't come up with excuses only smiled bashfully, she was absolutely gorgeus when she did that and it even works on Bronya and Fuuka to get what she wants.

"My bad" Mei said while smiling.

Normally, Ryan would be dumbstruck by Mei's angelic smile and everyone would do. But, Ryan was not amused that his hair was ruined so he stood up and went over to Mei who was keep smilling in effort to disarm Ryan from getting annoyed. That was futile however when she saw that he stared at her while smirking, Mei sensed that she just better accept whatever scolding Ryan could came up with...She haven't seen Ryan ever scold a girl before, she hoped he would be gentle.

"Mei, acting cute won't get you out of this! I'll have my revenge on the spot! Let me grab that milk, you have to pay for the compensation" Ryan said while pointing his index finger.

Because Mei was currently holding the milk bottle close to her chest, she immediately blushed when Ryan pointed it out. What can she say? That gave mixed signal! Everyone who heard and witnessed on what happened immediately went silent, Kiana had her mouth gaping while blushing, Sakura jerked her head toward Mei and Ryan with widened eyes, Bronya didn't care for she's facing a boss on her game, Fuuka stopped writing and stared at them too, Kallen almost chocked on her bubblegum, Han and Gin looked at each other while thinking that Ryan could be a dumb bastard sometimes while Igor watched impassively.

"Eh?! My milk?!" Mei said while blushing.

"Yes, let me or I will have to grab it forcefully...I want to taste it" Ryan said while smirking.

Mei gasped while blushing hard as she unconsciously shielded her E cup breast by crossing her arms in front of it, Kiana stood up with blushing face, Sakura now actually had her jaw dropped, Bronya still playing her game, Fuuka dropped her pen, Kallen had to spit her bubblegum, Gin and Han facepalmed hard while Igor snorted as he seated himself. This should be categorized as a short movie, disaster strikes in three...two...one...Ryan realized the double meaning of his words then waved his hand around while his cheeks redden a bit, that's what you get for saying something ambiguos you dumb fuck!

"W-Wait, that's not what I-" Ryan said while stuttering.

"U-Um Ryan-kun, I-I believe we should go slowly you know? Get to know each other better first...T-This is too fast, I need to p-prepare my heart!" Mei said while blushing hard.

"That's sexual harrasment!" Kallen said.

"H-How lewd!" Sakura said.

"Don't go any closer to her! Ryan, that could be considered rape! I'm telling Theresa right now!" Kiana said while she took out her phone.

"Keep that up and I'll drag you to Student Council Office myself" Fuuka warned from her seat.

"Yup, now he's done it" Gin said.

"It's surprising this hasn't lead him getting slapped yet" Han said.

"Hey, look outside!" A Valkyrie said.

Everyone immediately diverted their attention outside the classroom and found a Charon transport hovering above the landing pad near Saint Freya Combat Division buildings. Charon Transport was a single rotored small helicopter capable transporting ten people in its cargo compartment, it has two side hatches as an entrance and equipped with hard point as a base for installing weaponry for gunners to shoot. The most common installed was Gatling gun but some also installed grenade launcher or prototype miniaturized rail gun, the helicopter was easily the most used transport for its low cost production, easy manufactuting process and reliabilities. It's lightly armored though and was not as fast a dropship with fusion engines, but it available in great numbers and smaller so it was an excellent choice for dropping troops in the middle of heavy firefights.

This particular model had Schicksal logos painted on it's side hatches and colored white instead of the standard grey paint job, it soon touched down on top of the surface helipad that the academy had and few people in business suit came out from it. Curiousity filled the students as they exited the classroom but was stopped when Himeko showed up in the entrance while wearing triumphant grin on her face.

"What? Curious on who it is? Too bad, class will begin. Ryan, Gin, Han and Igor. You four have been summoned by the principal to her chamber, its best if you could get there as soon as possible" Himeko said.

"...Are we in trouble?" Han asked Himeko.

"Depends, now off you go" Himeko said.

The entire class watched as Ryan nodded his head and silently lead the three other Vikings toward the principal chamber, most were curious on what was they got involved now. Only Himeko knew the real reason why would only the four of them was called, Ryan, Gin, Han and Igor were the most experienced fighter that The Vikings had. Fuuka silently inspected Himeko's expression who looked at the four student with complicated expression. She then sighed as she put down her pen and put away her reports, Kallen noticed it and she leaned toward Fuuka.

"What do you think is going on, Fuuka?" Kallen asked her.

"I don't know, but my gut feeling told me it won't be a good news" Fuuka said to Kallen.

The Four Vikings walked in silence as they headed toward the principal's chamber after stopping by on the restroom, each of them wondering on why would the four of them only that was required to see her? Ryan however had a suspicion on why would only the four of them that was called, he didn't feel like this meeting would end with them returning to class peacefully. They soon arrived at the door and Han knocked on it twice, it was opened by someone who wore business suit, wearing sun glasses and had a radio on his left ears. The Four Vikings entered the chamber, there they saw Victoria and Theresa seated on the sofa directly in front of a man with grey hair, unamused look shown in his brown eyes and facial expression and then he noticed the four of them. Beside the man was a young looking purple haired lady wearing lab coat with grey business suit underneath it and pencil skirt, she also looked at The Vikings when they entered the room.

"So they are what you dubbed the best? Only four of them among thirty recruits?" The man asked Theresa.

"The specification you asked was quite demanding, Mr. Howard...It took a lot of effort to even gather all thirty of them on this academy" Theresa said with serious expression.

"I admit it is...Well, who is the leader?" Howard asked the four Vikings.

"I am, sir" Ryan said.

Howard got up from the sofa and went over toward Ryan, the said young man kept his posture straight, eyes lookiny forward and neutral expression on his face. Howard took in every detail and his attention was taken to the right metallic arm of Ryan, he snickered as he circled Ryan.

"Heh, a wounded kid as the leader. You got skills in combat I suppose?" Howard asked Ryan.

"Mr. Howard, did you even read the resume we sent to you?" Theresa asked sarcastically.

"Too much hassle on those bullshit, I prefer in knowing face to face...Hmmm, he do possess a leader's aura. Did you kill someone before going to this academy boy?" Howard asked Ryan.

"Hundreds of them, sir" Ryan answered in even tone.

"So you're not afraid against human's blood, but what about your men? Answer honestly, are they experienced in killing someone?" Howard asked Ryan.

"No sir" Ryan said without wavering.

"What was Viking's full name?" Howard asked Ryan as he circled him.

"Viking Assault Unit, sir" Ryan answered.

"Notice the word 'unit' on it? It doesn't have whatever your name on it, or a squad but a unit. That means thirty skilled operators, not four of the best...I didn't doubt your abilities, the four of you look and reek stench of killers anyway" Howard said as he returned to his seat.

Veins could be seen surfacing on Han's forehead but he kept his face neutral, Igor ignored all of that for he's used to it, Gin didn't gave single fucks regarding the guy's words and Ryan internally snorted as he took in the man's appearance. He looked like your typical asshole rich guy who thinks money could buy everything, well he already lose any sense of respect from Ryan for insulting his men.

"Its been a month and I see no significant progress in the growth of your unit-"

"They need time to be ready, they're just a human" Ryan dare to cut off Howard when he spoke.

"You got no manners what so ever, didn't they tell you to respect your owner?" Howard asked while sneering.

"As far as I'm concerned, I didn't swore to be a knight" Ryan answered.

"Enough of this, we're getting off topic! Mr. Howard, even if you are the one that fund Project Asgard, insulting your own subject would not do any good" Victoria said sternly.

Lucky them, who Ryan just jabbed with subtle insult was the one that currently funded the project he's in charge of. What coul possibly go wrong with continuing this line of interaction? A lot of things Ryan supposed, but he will abide what Victoria's said...He better not pour gasoline on the flames that Victoria just put off.

"...Fine, but I got my eye on you kid...Regardless, I want the project to be speed up. I don't have a need for kids that were too scared to take someone's life, I want them to be put on live combat on real mission"

"Mr. Howard, sending them on live fire mission this early would have a high chance of them failing. They are not ready!" Victoria said.

"I don't care, I need results. Furthermore, the existance of Sleipnir Armor is still considered top secret so they will deploy without one" Howard said as he got up.

It was at this moment that Ryan's lieutenant could almost heard a figurative snap coming from Ryan, the said man marched toward Howard and faced the man without any sort of restraint and hesitation. Han was about to intercept before Gin grabbed his arm and shook his head, Howard was being unreasonable and Ryan was going to argue with him.

"Okay dickbag, are you trying to kill off my men!? What part of not ready don't you ego-inflated brain doesn't get!?" Ryan said to Howard.

"Like I said, I don't care whether they were ready or not. If they die, then they are not suited for this project after all. Dead men can be replaced, get me result within two weeks or I will retract my funding from this project!" Howard stared at Ryan with impassive face.

"Oi you can't just tell someone to go on suicide mission that easily-" Ryan said.

"Oh but I can, I'm your owner after all. If I tell you to die then you might as well do it, you can't backout from this project. The contract is legally binding, your fate is sealed...I have waste enough of my time already, I have another meeting that I need to attend on Shanghai. Jill, you will stay here and supervise them" Howard said as he get up.

"...Understood" The woman named Jill said.

The door closed, Ryan and his lieutenants sighed hard at what they just experienced. Theresa rested her head on the sofa while Victoria decided to opened her well hidden flask and took a large gulp from it to sooth her headache, Jill just lookee uncomfortable with what her boss just caused, this was going to be a problem with The Vikings first impression toward their source of incomr being this bad.

"...Shit, I don't remember our contractor would be an asshole. Principal, you didn't tell us about this!" Han said to Theresa.

"This surprised me as well, Lieutenant Han. Something isn't right with all this but for now our hands are tied, he was correct regarding that the fate of Project Asgard is on his hands...I will try to contact the headquarters regarding this new development" Theresa said.

Theresa also immediately head into her desk and started operating the holographic pc on the desk, she smelled that something was up because even Schicksal's Department of Science would not be that stupid. She suspected that Howard was acting on his own, did he attempt to subtly discontinue thia project or was his aim was to kill the recruits only?

"Jill wasn't it? How long have you been working under that man?" Ryan asked Jill.

"Two weeks and I'm starting to regret that decision...I won't be so uptight in my duty but please note that you will have to do something, this man's ego was so high that even Burj Khalifa was nothing" Jill said to Ryan.

"I know...its just that there's no way we could just pick a random target on the map and went in gun blazing, besides The Vikings isn't ready yet and without armor then it's the same as suicide...God, this was worse than I thought" Ryan said then sighed.

"I sympathized with your issue right now but you have no other way, like it or not you have to do this" Jill said while frowning.

"Hah...the men won't like it when they heard about this" Gin said outloud after sighing.

"No fucking shit" Han said.

They only got two weeks to deliver results, that wasn't a lot of time to spare and The Vikings was underprepared if he wanted to be honest. Is there a way to prepare them in short amount of time? The only way was training but Ryan was at loss on what kind of training would suffice.

"Victoria, would two weeks training without armor will be enough to prepare them?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"...You guys already knew the basics, but it still isn't enough. You will need to refamiliarize yourself being in combat without your armor and intensive combat practice...That means fighting for entire day, class would just get in the way...Brutal but it is effective in familiarizing them in combat situations quickly" Victoria said.

"...I don't see another option other than that, let's do it then" Ryan said in low tone.

"Okay, then from today's onwards you will be in combat training and excused from class. You will attend firefight simulation all the way until friday, you take break on weekend then back in action until Thursday next week, you rest on Friday, prepare for the mission deployment on Saturday then you go in the mission on Sunday...How about that?" Victoria asked them.

"Perfect...we got no time to lose, let's do this immediately" Ryan said as he left the room.

Followed by Gin, Han and Igor, Ryan walked back into class with an expression so serious it never shown up whenerver they were on training before, the situation was dire...The entire project would get shut down if they did nothing, each Viking's got their own reason to be here and for Ryan it was to find the truth. If he fails then there goes his way inside Schicksal, he don't want to cause a mess with them for he will get killed in few days if he try to do that. Ryan opened the classroom door and walked to the front podium to speak with Himeko.

"Do you know about what was going on?" Ryan asked Himeko.

"I got a hunch, but to think it turned out for real...I'll let you have the class podium for now" Himeko said while smiling bitterly.

Taking his position on the podium and flanked by his lieutenants, Ryan decided to eye every single Viking present on class. He controlled his breath to calm himself before he speak, this will cause a stir.

"Few minutes ago, I got into argument with some cunt named Howard who turns out to be our project's source of income" Ryan begun speaking.

Most of The Valkyries gasped when Ryan begun to speak, his tone was laced with malice and his words were harsh as well. This was the first time they saw him with an angry expression latched on his face. He may shown seriousness most of the time but at least he's able to smile, there's no hint of such thing right now may be a prove on how stressful the situation was.

"He felt that our unit did not make any significant progress in one month since our formation, if he bother to read the resume given to him then he might know that we clashed against The Valkyries...So, he decided that our unit needs to be put on a real mission. That granted our wish? No, we will have to deploy without equipping our armor since the existance of Sleipnir armor is a top secret within Schicksal" Ryan said to The Vikings.

"The fuck?!" "What kind of asshole that guy is, I want to punch him!" "This is bullshit!"

The Vikings was livid while shouting profanities while the girls mostly went quiet, they were all thinking regarding that statement Ryan just made. The Vikings was told to go into combat without their armor? That's a huge risk of getting killed, even The Valkyries was never told to do such thing. Limiting their own combat potential was a dumb decision that could get them killed, that was the same as suicide.

"Silence! Victoria and I have agreed on a way out, we will train for non stop until Friday! Rest in the weekend then continue again until Thursday! Rest on Friday, prepare for mission on Saturday before we're going in on Sunday! That asshole wants result? We'll give him something to shove into his ass, let's get the training started! Vikings, head to the armory and gear up! Move it!" Ryan said then commanded them.

No one trying to stop the boys from leaving as they rose up from their seats with serious expression then walked out the classroom, even Himeko was just standing in silence before she return to the class podium. Kiana and Mei was frowning as both discussed on what they just saw, Bronya wordlessly accessing Schicksal's network to find out the person behind's Project Asgard funding, Kallen, Fuuka and Sakura looked at each other in confirmation on what Ryan meant when he mentioned training non-stop.

"They have it rough girls, I suggest you don't interfere on their affairs for now...They need their time in training, the best we could do right now is to cheer on them" Himeko said in gentle tone.

The Vikings reached their unofficial headquarter which was the school main armory, each of them started gearing up for a standard infantry instead equipping their armor. Han contemplates on their training place, the only available land that could be used for military training around Soukai was a forested area. Everyone then stopped whatever they were doing when a map for the mission was uploaded into the school armory's terminal, Han was right as it was a densely packed forest area.

"Okay...hold out mission? For an assault unit?" Rahn said out loud.

"There's nothing wrong for an assault unit that has defensive capabilities, but it seems it would be a tight spot. We are exposed on 360 degrees, we would have clear line of sight but so little cover among the trees...then we'll just have to improvise" Han said.

"Exactly. My lieutenants, we're on either deep pool of shit or the most convenient solution to this problem! If we don't have cover, then we'll just have to make one. Any of you ever camp in the wilderness?" Ryan asked The Vikings.

"Some of us did" Igor said when few hands rose up.

"Excellent, grab your shovel, machetes and axes. Pack like you're about to build your home in the middle of nowhere, fill your every pocket or storage, here's what we are going to do" Ryan said as he explained the plan he had.

.

It's been several hours since Howard's visit and The Vikings wasted zero seconds preparing for the brutal training they were about to do, most had checked in with their place of work notifying them that they won't be available for two weeks from now. They took their time in the school armory, stocking up their phase shifter with ammo and equipment and still chose to carry a large backpack to store the other things they will carry. Even though this was technically a training session, The Vikings packed as if they will go on a long term military operation with how much gear and ammo they carried.

Victoria stared at thirty Vikings that was currently standing underneath heavy rain on the assembly field, she sighed as she put on a black cap then proceeded to approach them. Each of them were wearing forest camouflage infantry uniform, complimented with dark green painted armor plating on torso, shoulders, arms and legs. Some of them wore black balaclava, everyone either had a light green colored scouter or dark blue combat googles, each had dark green combat gloves worn, all wore dark green military combat boots. They wore United Nations Armed Forces Army Division Standard Issue Combat Helmet, dark green in coloring and with night vision googles attached on it. Each of them brought dark green military backpack with them, weapons of choice in hand as they stand on alert when Victoria approached them.

The Valkyries watched on from the porch or opened classroom windows, it's the first time they caught the sight of The Vikings without their armor and their face without their helmets before they going to train. Some of them noted that few of the boys had another bag on their feet alongside theirs on their back, what was the content? The most concluded that the bag was loaded with some kind of heavy weapons, the boys also had shovels, machetes or axes strapped on their backpack. They were not messing around before they were going to their training ground which based on the loadout, will be a forested area. Ryan met with Victoria face to face, she nodded her head only and he immediately understood on what she wanted.

"At ease men, our instructor would like to have a word" Ryan said to The Vikings.

"Thank you, commander...I'll spare the shits that you've heard already and get straight to the point! Your objective is simple, get to the designated area and hold that said position whatever the cost until Saturday morning! You can call for resupplies or casualties evacuation for those that could no longer fight but take heed, no one could predict what happen in the field! This was some shitty situation we're in and its only the first step from solving it, consider yourself died the moment you could no longer fight on this training, think on improving because on the mission on Sunday next week it could be your actual death if you don't improve yourself! You get me, Vikings!?" Victoria asked The Vikings.

""""""""""YES MA'AM!"""""""""" The Vikings immediately responded.

"Perfect! We're preparing your insertion craft, you're leaving in five! If any of you want to say a word to the beautiful ladies behind me that were concerned about your well being then do so now!" Victoria said while smirking.

The Valkyries were a bit shocked but nevertheless they stay on where they were because Victoria wasn't wrong, they sympathized on the case the boys were stuck in and they were genuinely concerned that they will spend almost six day in the field. The Vikings decided to walked back toward the combat division building, the first year Valkyries also decided to see them off and all of them went to the front porch. Fuuka followed by Kiana, Bronya, Mei, Kallen and Sakura moved to the front of the girls. Ryan walked ahead as the others started talking to the girls.

"I knew that when Instructor Himeko made that face, something bad is going to happen" Fuuka said to Ryan.

"No kidding, your gut was right...This is the only way we could come up to better prepare everyone for intense combat situation, it can't be helped" Ryan said while shrugging.

"This was too sudden though, can't this wait until tomorrow?" Mei asked Ryan.

"The more time we spend idle, the less we could do to familiarize ourselves...Mei, every Viking you see now is agitated, training could actually mitigate it right?" Ryan asked Mei back.

"Well yes, but look at this heavy rain!" Mei said to Ryan.

"Won't be a problem, if we couldn't survive this then how will we survive that mission next week?" Ryan said while smilling confidently.

"You're right, please do be careful out there" Mei said while smiling bitterly.

Sakura walked forward and she handed Ryan a package wrapped in a plastic bag, Ryan inspected the content which was lightweighted and rose an eyebrow to indicate his question. He immediately stored it inside his backpack regardless, whatever it is it should be helpful.

"It's herbal tea that I carried around, good for combating cold. With how the weather is lately, I think it would help with having this in the field" Sakura said while smiling.

"This really helps Sakura, thanks" Ryan said while smiling back.

"I could only wish you and the others the best of luck, this will be tough" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Don't worry Kallen, I've survived far worse...Though, this will sucks a lot" Ryan said while showing his right mechanical arm.

"Bronya wish Ryan a good luck" Bronya said.

"Thanks Bronya, I can't make deliveries while I'm on the field alright? Hahahaha" Ryan said, mentioning the event back on KFC.

"Bronya understood, but it would be a different case on the weekends. Doom 4 would come out so Ryan should be ready for it" Bronya said.

"I suppose you're right" Ryan said while cringing.

Kiana said nothing as she watched Ryan talked to the girls, she eventually knew that Ryan would attract a lot of attention from the opposite sex. She had imagined a lot of time in the past on how will he looked like when he's grown up, she didn't have any complaints on what she saw in front of her now. Kiana was about to say her piece when Ryan approached her while looking all serious, she stopped herself for a bit when Ryan smiled bitterly at her.

"Kiana...we need to talk, after this excersise is over" Ryan said to Kiana.

"Eh? About what? Don't tell me it was the money on that convenience store, it's fine already!" Kiana said while grinning.

"No...It's about the past, you know what I mean" Ryan said to Kiana.

Kiana gasped as he mentioned that, what's with this!? Did he somehow able to remembered on what happened to him? Did this mean that he remembered her now? Of what they did back when they were little kids? How he lied to her back on that shelther? Where he actually went before he settled on Southern Japan? So many possibilities but this had been the closest she ever been on getting an answer! Kiana stayed silent with disbelieve on her face however, she didn't want to jump the gun right away as she sensed that something was up.

"I'll be frank, I still don't remember because I only got clues about it...Kiana, I owe you an apology...I can't remember, I wished to but I can't! No, I owe you more than an apology because you have been enduring...I'm sorry that I put you through it-"

"Its fine Ryan! Although yes this is not how I wanted it, at least now you knew about it...I have so much I want to tell you, so many memories that I wish to recount together...But, I could wait a little longer now, you have an important thing to do" Kiana said.

Yes, Kiana was sad that Ryan didn't actually remember but for him to find clues regarding his past involvement with her was relieving in its own way. Now, at least Ryan was aware of it and telling him of his past memories would not be wierd. Ryan was content that he found a way to actually regain some of his lost memories, the way was through someone that was nearby all this time. With this, he might actually learn on what was happening eleven years ago and learn his involvement with Kaslana family...If he could do it while mending his relationship with Kiana, that's even better.

"I see...Is Sunday a good time?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"Yes, I can't wait!" Kiana said as she smiled.

Her smile was filled with happiness and eagerness it was so radiant in Ryan's eyes, he couldn't helped himself to smiled back at Kiana. The other girls was making confused faces on what was Ryan and Kiana talked about, Kallen however had a hunch. She remembered when Kiana would stay on the dropship landing platform as she waited for someone to showed up, she mentioned him as a 'dummy' who dared in making her wait...Kallen looked at Ryan, she had no idea that the person Kiana was waiting for all this time would shown up very close to her after a long time. Small world but fate was kind of an asshole sometimes, Ryan looked back when he heard jet engines approaching then hovering nearby as an Albatross dropship touched down in the courtyard.

"Well, I guess this is it then...See you next time girls" Ryan said.

"So...About what you and Ryan talk about" Kallen begun.

"Yeah, about that... Actually-" Kiana said.

The top guns and the other Valkyries started saying their parting words at the boys, Ryan and the others formed a tight formation in front of them before they saluted at the girls in Viking's style. The girls replied by saluting back then waved as the boys all rushed inside the dropship, seated themselves then strapped the seat belts before they took off. Victoria stood in front of the rear hatch as she eyed her students, she made an eye contact with Ryan who nodded at her.

"We'll be monitoring your progress, make sure that you and your men are ready" Victoria said.

"I will, wish us luck Victoria" Ryan said.

"You bet...Do me proud boys! Kick ass out there!" Victoria said.

""""""""""HUZZAH!"""""""""" The Vikings shouted.

The dropship hatch closed and it started gaining altitudes, Victoria alongside The Valkyries watched as the dropship heading north toward Soukai's forested area and a mountain in the middle of it. Their mission was to hold a marked area near the mountain, set up a suitable defensive position and try not to get wiped for the next five days. Its always easier said than done, but The Vikings already had a plan conceived by Ryan and the lieutenants that involved camping the site and as well make a tiny village if given the chance to.

Seated inside the dropship with song Fortunate Son set by Han earned him stares from The Vikings who got the reference, the blaring song gave the insertion feels like they were on Vietnam war as Americans. Ryan inspected the landing zone then their designated path to the hold out position, its a kilometer away and possibly they will get ambushed along the way. He looked at his men, each busy with their own stuff then he took out his M16B-PAR with holograpchic scope and inspected it. The mission next week aims to hide Project Asgard Viking's true strength so even their allegiance to Schicksal must be hidden, they will deploy as mercenaries instead. That's the reason why they use gears and equipment that differs from standard Schicksal one, it will be a convenient cover up too if they fucked the mission up.

"This is Victor-023, welcome aboard boys! We are currently flying to the Landing Zone Alpha, set near the mountain and jampacked with trees. No way I could land her down with how big her ass is, hope you guys knew how to rappell down from the dropship!" The pilot said.

"This is Viking 01, we hear you Victor. Don't worry, it's among the first thing we learn. Is there anything else we should be aware of?" Ryan asked the pilot.

"Weather radar shows that this heavy rain will last for at least three more hours, hope you guys dressed warmly because it show the same thing for the next few days in the weather prediction" The pilot said.

"Got it, thanks for the info" Ryan said.

"Heavy rain for days? Argh, this will suck" Agus said.

"Sniper's nightmare huh? Hey boss, any info on what will we face when we arrived there?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Victoria just told me to expect anything" Ryan said.

"Yikes, even Honkai Beast?" Rahn said while frowning.

"Perhaps...Come on, we packed like we're going straight into frontline combat. Should give us some fighting chance if it did shows up" Ryan said.

The dropship slowed down when it approached the marked landing zone, it hadn't even been five minutes since they were on the air and they already arrived. Ryan stood up, walked toward the dropship rear hatch and opened it. He was immediately greeted by strong winds and rainwater hitting his balaclava covered face, he only gave hand sign and The Vikings all stood up in preparation to rappell their way down.

"Here we are boys! Good hunting!" The dropship pilot said.

Two ropes descended from the dropship ceiling, Ryan took one and Gin beside him took others, they descended first to the dense forest and immediately went to prone while covering the descending Vikings. After thirty of them were all in the ground, Ryan gave the hand sign for the dropship to wave off and they immediately return to Saint Freya Academy.

"We'll march a kilometer to the west, Rahn you're on point, Kenji and Grey, you two back him up. Let's move!" Ryan said.

The Vikings arrived on their designated hold out position after marching a kilometer toward it, when they arrived they got no time to rest as everyone started working to set up defenses. Few of them grabbed their axe as they went and chopped several trees down, they positioned the downed trees around their position then those with shovel started digging for a small trench beneath the trees. Several others set up a recharge station for their equipment with batteries, others set a small shades so they could place their more sensitive equipment such as their radio or terminals. The rest could be seen guarding them in case any attacks came early, they patrolled the perimeter with weapons drawn.

Back on Saint Freya Academy's Mission Control Center, Victoria was impressed while Theresa nodded her head in approval. The Vikings worked fast, they were only told to hold that said position but they had the initiative to build a small outpost with suitable defenses there. They covered every direction with a machine gun post, they had makeshift command centre, a triage hut for casualties, small storage for their rations and ammo dump. Overall, it's a fully functional outpost garrisoned by thirty Vikings and now some of them could be seen patrolling the surrounding area a hundred meter from their outpost.

"Victoria, did you teach them how to build a base?" Theresa asked Victoria.

"Funny thing is, I didn't. Those boys had their own iniatives to build an outpost, looks pretty well built if I say so" Victoria commented.

"The only thing we had to do left is to actually test their abilities in combat...Oh well, let's get started. What's the status on our Hard Light Hologram Projector around the forest?" Theresa asked the operators in the room.

"Operational ma'am, we are ready to begin" One operator responded.

"Excellent. Drop three standard zombies to that western barricade, let's see how they react" Theresa said while smirking.

"...Why do I get a feeling that this wasn't the first time you done this?" Victoria asked with uneasy smile on her face.

Western barricade Vikings was entrenched but they didn't really on stand by, they only kept their eyes forward and since the rain eased up a bit they could see a bit farther than when its raining heavily. Their trench was filled with water puddle, it was really uncomfortable. Three Vikings, who were on stand by failed to notice something falling from top of the trees before three of holographic zombies dropped in front of them. They yelped in surprised and they instinctively pressed the trigger of their weapons, gunfires immediately disturbed the calm forest.

"CONTACT WEST!" One of them shouted.

"Contact west, copy that! It's on boys! Ready yourselves!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Good reflex, put a small horde of ten coming to reinforce from the north-west" Theresa said.

Theresa held her chin while smirking, the boys got good trigger reflex. Time to see how will they cope on extreme and stressful situation. It's been a while since she did this to her students, might as well enjoyed it while it lasted, the operator who worked with her already used to her technique in stressing the students so she immediately knew what type of enemies to gradually spawned.

"Yes ma'am" The operator responded and spawned the enemies.

"Small horde north west!" One Viking shouted.

The Vikings begun reinforcing their barricades and started firing on anything that moves in front of them, it was all well with the zombies before the armed human holographic enemies showed up. It will be fine if they carry standard weaponry, but the operator felt like being a cruel girl today so she spawned them with RPG10 being carried by two of them. Regarding the damage, this holographic enemies dealt electric based damage and getting hit by the rocket launcher type was a guaranteed knock out for them without Sleipnir Armor.

"RPG! RPG!" The one who spotted them warned.

WHOSH!

BAM!

"Man down!" One Viking said on radio.

The situation continued for a bit with waves of human enemies followed by several zombie hordes enroaching upon their position, everyone on the barricade started getting frustrated when each kills resulted with the other enemies getting closer into the camp. Ryan was on the command tent, hologram map was in front of him as he monitor the battle, it was a while before he noticed a large horde of zombies alongside several Reapers emerged on the northern position.

"North flank? What's your status?!" Ryan asked them on radio.

"Overwhelmed sir, we are stucked! There's a large horde approaching but we can't intercept them without leaving the defense on the north-east!" One Viking responded on radio.

"Fuck! Fine, hold your position. I'll deal with them myself! Han, you're in charge while I deal with those zombies!" Ryan said as he burst out of the tent.

"Go get em blitzkrieg style, commander!" Han said as he took Ryan previous position.

Ryan get out of the tent and headed north while firing his weapon toward enemies near his position to helped his fellow Vikings, when he reached the northern barricade he saw that the Vikings there were either unconscious or moaning in pain and there's a large horde approaching in front of them. He sighed hard, sheathed his M16B-PAR and took out his M1911H alongside a combat knife. He set his stance before sprinting toward the horde, this will either end up with them dissapear or Ryan going unconscious after receiving too many hits.

The attacks stopped when sun had set, The Vikings were in shambles. Around six Vikings were inside the triage hut being treated for their injuries, the others was gathered on the center of the outpost, sipping their drink with military rations in hand. They were huddled near bonfire, since it's practice they took the liberty to make one and they're the ones getting attacked anyway with their position already known. As Han said when he was asked by Ryan why would they created bonfire when enemies were nearby, Han only replies by shrugging and said 'YOLO' to him.

"So, I spotted our representative Fuuka headed into a bar two days ago" One Viking suddenly said.

"Really? Weren't she still sixteen?" Another Viking asked.

"I dunno about that, how about you ask her, commander?" The Viking asked Ryan.

"What makes you think that I could ask that casually to her?" Ryan replied while sipping his water canteen.

"Weren't you and her have a thing going on?" Another Viking asked Ryan.

"No, that's just for show. Those who were interested on her could ask her out, if you're man enough" Ryan said while smiling.

"Hahahaha, one misstep and you'll get beaten up though..." One Viking said.

"Oh yeah commander, heard from a Valkyrie that you went toward Mei's and Bronya's room at night few days ago. Did you have a threesome or something you lucky dog!?" Agus said casually.

Agus then realized what he just said outloud and the camp went quiet under a second, only the sound of burning wood, crickets and jaws dropped could be heard around them right now. Ryan looked at Agus with face showing horror and killing intent, this was basically a public execution! He knew he was fucked the moment he and Mei were playing around a little too rough after that visit to the buffet, guess Mei's squealing and him laughing could be heard by those next doors! Noted and will be implemented, if he survived this one!

""""""""""WHAT?!"""""""""" The Vikings, even those on guard duty said.

"SON OF A BITCH!" One of them shouted.

"She's like an idol to us! What kind of witchcraft you use to get her affection!?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Even getting Bronya too? You really didn't held back didnt you?" Han asked Ryan.

"...At least you use condom, right?" A Viking asked Ryan.

"I can't believe this bastard managed to get laid first among us!" James said, hypocritical asshole.

"He would already slept with half of the girls on Soukai with his looks and charming mouth if he wants to!" Gin said while snickering.

"Hold the fuck up you overzealous assholes! I only went there for dinner!" Ryan said his defense, it was fucking ineffective!

The Vikings gasped when they heard what Ryan did, ate Mei's cooking? That was the dream majority of them had and Ryan did it without putting that much effort according to these Vikings. The accused man knew he just dug himself a deep hole with what he just said, this would be their topic of conversation for a while.

"You ate her cooking?! What kind of luck this guy have, seriously!?" Han said with outraged expression.

"I call bullshit on that one! You were there to eat dinner before you fucked like in that new Johnny Sin's video!" Rahn said while pointing his index finger.

"...You're watching too much porn, man" A Viking beside Rahn said while smiling uneasily.

"How's it taste? Bet it was heavenly!" One Viking asked Ryan.

"We should just put him on trial before execution!" James said to Han.

"No, fate would've done it since he probably used all of his lifetime supply of luck to get lucky with Mei and Bronya. I mean seriously, with a girl that beautiful with smoking hot body and a loli cutie!" Han said to James.

"Wait...All of The Valkyries First Year Top Guns befriended this guy, two down four to go?" Gin asked Ryan while smiling.

"Okay that's a deadly accusation! I didn't befriended them to have sex! I'm still a virgin for god sake! What kind of person do you think I am?" Ryan asked with offended tone.

"...The Virginity Hunter?" Rahn answered with unsure tone.

"Chad Ryan 'Thundercock' Taurus?" Han answered.

"""""Yeah!""""" Few Vikings said simultaneously.

"Okay that's it, fight me you cunts!" Ryan shouted, veins popping on his forehead and cheeks.

"Game on!" Rahn said as he rose up.

TRATATATATATATATATATATATA!

"CONTACT!" One of the guard shouted.

"...Alright, fun time's over boys. Grab your guns" Ryan said unenthusiastically.

The Vikings groaned in frustation before they rose up from their positions, carried their guns alongside their food and drinks to their respective defensive position. This was night one, they couldn't imagine what will happen on night two and on...Hope it wasnt awful as the first night but since when that's the case? Defensive situations like this always get the fucked rating rose with each passing night..

.

Five days had passed since the boys went to train, it was lovely sunny Saturday morning. The Valkyries was gathered on school after their training session, they were resting on the courtyard after their mock duel that they did in effort to prepared themselves. They just got a mission, there had been a disturbance alongside an island near Korean Peninsula and if the disturbance kept happened until Sunday next week then the girls will be deployed. Not all of them will though, only fifteen on each batch will be selected so all of them will do the selection on Monday.

"Hyah!"

Kiana performed a roundhouse kick on her opponent which landed straight on her helmet covered head, Kiana's opponent was sent twirling sideways to the left before she landed on the ground, rolled then she collapsed on the ground. Mei blew the whistle as she raised her hand to signal the end of the match, Kiana pumped her fist at her three victory streaks.

"Duel ends! Winner, Kiana!" Mei said.

"Whooo! Yes!" Kiana said while grinning.

"She's on the roll today huh, three straight wins" Fuuka commented.

"Yeah, she's not playing around...Guess she wants to participate on that mission" Kallen said.

"Hey look, that's the boys!" Momose said.

An Albatross dropship approached the large courtyard, it hovered for a bit before it landed down smoothly. The girls was about to converge on the dropship before dozens of medical personnels came out of the medical wing with stretchers, the dropship rear hatch opened and what awaited the girls was a horrible image. Around twelve Vikings was on the dropship floor, devoid of gear and didn't moved an inch as their fellow Vikings picked them up. They got off the dropships and only offer polite nods at the girls, their face looked like they just went on harsh fight for days. They got eye bags and it was black due to lack of sleep, they didn't even showered for days, they were sluggish as they moved from the dropship, they didn't even had energy left to talk and all of them dragged their feet when they walk.

The Lieutenants didn't fare better, all of them looked the same. Rahn was covered in dirt from head to toes, Agus had his frontal area colored brown by mud, James had this dead look on his face as he walked with his mud splattered M16B-PAR on his hand, Gin was quite fine but his clothes were a mess with clear tear on several part of it, Han was carried by Igor who still looked normal but only with dirty clothes...Wait, where's Ryan?

The said young man came out of the dropship last and he was in shambles, his cloth dirtied and teared, he lost his torso armor plating, his hair was a mess and his face was pale. He got off the dropship while the maintenance personnels came in and salvaged any equipment that The Vikings brought back with them, Ryan was a little late to noticed that the girls was looking at him before he managed to crack a small smile.

"Hey, training huh?" Ryan asked them.

"Ryan, what happened?" Kallen asked him.

"Intense firefights almost non-stop, regularly attacked by Honkai creatures, constant electrical bombardment, not to mention that it happened at random time...You know, I'm somehow relieved with the fact that it only took twelve Vikings down instead of our entire unit...Victoria is quite sadistic" Ryan said then sighed.

"Oh so that's why you came back with your unit in shambles...My condolences" Fuuka said while smiling a bit.

"Appreciated...Fuuka, you sure you didn't lie about your age?" Ryan suddenly asked.

"Hmm? This is quite random, what brought this up?" Fuuka asked Ryan back.

"Yeah, a Viking mentioned that he saw you on walking into a bar...You're still sixteen, right?" Ryan asked with eyebrows rosed.

"Yeah...about that" Fuuka said while scratching her left cheek.

Just as when she about to answer uncomfortably on why would she entered a bar while she's still sixteen years old, Victoria approached them and tapped Ryan's right shoulder. She looked just as tired as he is, but she had it easier with air conditioning, warm bath and coffee. Ryan and the boys had to suffer with cold nights, water, military rations and constantly being harrased by bullets or explosions.

"There you are commander, I have been expecting you. I need you in the mission control center immediately, It's urgent. Ms. Fuuka, you are also needed there" Victoria said as she approached them.

"Victoria, I just came back, could you give me some time to rest?" Ryan asked with half closed eyes.

"Wish I could, But this order came straight from Principal Theresa" Victoria said while shrugging.

"Don't blame me if I couldn't think straight, had salty mouth or lack of smile alright? You gave my unit a hell on earth for five days straight" Ryan said while his eyes were half closed.

"Hahahaha! And look at you, the one that had the highest kill count among them actually get some practice! How is it? Did you readjust back to that time?" Victoria asked Ryan while smirking.

"To be frank, yes it is for me personally...The difference this time was I got an entire unit to think instead of myself" Ryan said while smiling a bit.

"I'll call that a success then. Girls, I suggest you let him rest first before you bombard him with questions alright?" Victoria said.

With that, she walked back to the mission control center first. Mei handed Ryan something, it was an energy bar she kept on her pocket as a sustenance for today's training but figured the young man in front of her needed it more. Ryan immediately tore open the package and shamelessly devoured the content, he need all energy he could muster today. He then thanked Mei who in return just smiled sweetly at him.

"It's best if you rest first Ryan-kun, we could talk later" Mei said to Ryan.

"I suppose so...Kiana, we promised to talk. How about on your house?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"It's fine, though...Everyone also curious Ryan, they also want to join in" Kiana said while scratching her head.

"Really?" Ryan asked.

"You can't blame us when Kiana kept this whole thing a secret for a long time and actually made us worry for quite a bit, consider it as payback" Kallen said to Ryan.

"That's okay, I guess...Well, we should be going now. See you girls later" Ryan said as he walked away.

Fuuka and Ryan walked toward Saint Freya Mission Control Center in the underground part of the school, it could be accessed from a special lift that was installed on every building on the academy. Ryan glanced at Fuuka who somehow kept her distance a bit from Ryan, he was confused at first and that's when he sniffed his armpit. God, he reeked with awful smells! Combination of sweat, gun powder, mud and not taking a bath for five days was really the smell of victory. He wondered why did Kallen, Mei and Kiana wasn't affected toward this horrendous smell on his body? Or were they actually affected yet they possessed the willpower so strong it didn't made their face flinched? Whatever the reason, Fuuka was clearly honest with how she feels.

"Goddamn, I'm stink" Ryan casually commented.

"Yes, you really didn't took any bath for five days?" Fuuka asked with one eyebrow raised.

"What did you expect? We're in the middle of the mountain with the nearest river being ten kilometers away from us, going there is the same as suicide with the enemies we fought...We even collected rain water just so we could have supply of water" Ryan said with his eyes closed.

"Wow, sounds rough...The Valkyries did taught to survive in the wilderness too, but at least that survival training back on junior high was purely survival excersise without combat" Fuuka said as she held her chin.

"You guys got it easy huh? Oh well, this will also continue on next week...Hah, we need to rethink on what we should carry on next week" Ryan sighed.

"Let's hope the location wouldn't change" Fuuka said while smiling a bit.

"Don't jinx it, lady" Ryan said while frowning.

"What? You believe in superstition?" Fuuka asked Ryan.

"Actually-"

Both arrived on the control center with Fuuka giggling lightly on Ryan's left side and Ryan frowning with a bit of blush on his cheeks, Ryan entered first then followed by Fuuka. The control center was usually busy but today it was especially busy, the operators that was usually on standby could be seen walking around with their data terminals, approaching and disscussing something with each other or could be seen typing frantically while coordinating someone. They found Theresa, Himeko and Victoria were talking to each other near a large screen on the wall, the large screen also displayed map of an island. Asking about it would be second priority as Himeko spotted the both of them then waved her hands to get them to her position, both Ryan and Fukka then approached Himeko. Along the way, Ryan got few glances from nearby operators when they smelled something awful nearby. The said suspected man could only sweatdropped while ignoring their looks and focusing on the current matter, he's too tired to argue.

"Good, you're here" Theresa said to Ryan.

"What happened?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"Exactly two hours ago, our reconnaissance drone was shot down on this island near Korean Peninsula. We have been monitoring Honkai activity on this island, if that activity persist even until Sunday next week then we would deploy platoon sized Valkyries as investigator" Theresa said.

"Okay, that would mean Fuuka will be handling this. I can't see why this requires me being here" Ryan said to Theresa.

"Your part comes after this, the island was ruled by an independent faction that rebelled against United Nations and refused to cooperate with Schicksal. That was fine, but Honkai activity have been detected on that island and there are no communication with the said faction or the island inhabitants. Like I said before, if by Sunday next week the activity still persist or if it increased in frequency or scale then the girls will be deployed as investigator or as supprressor if necessary. But they are not trained to specifically combat human armed forces, that's where The Vikings comes in" Theresa explained to Ryan.

Himeko used the remote on her hand to shown Ryan and Fuuka a projection of the island that Theresa mentioned, there's several small villages, a town and a military base could be seen from the photo. It was a tiny island with diameter only around ten kilometers, it also consisted mostly on plains with only two hills.

"So far, we only found this one military base with several outlying outposts around the island. Clouds have become major problems for our satellite and that's why we sent out drones, the feed we got before it was shot down was that the outposts were abandoned and all of their troops seemed to fall back to their main base...The thing that bothers me the most was also the lack of activity on the island's settlements and town" Theresa further explained.

"Ma'am, we got a situation!" One operator said.

"I don't like the sound of that" Himeko commented.

"The clouds were cleared off the island and we managed to get the view from our satellite, transmitting it to the main screen now" The operator said.

The image was replaced by a live feed coming from Schicksal satellite, it shown that the settlements and town was burning with the people could be seen running around in panic. It got worse when something big appeared on the screen, it was several Knight Class Honkai Beasts alongside an Emperor Class laying waste the town's population. Zombies started emerging among the population too, it was only a matter of time until the entire town will succumb to Honkai beasts.

"...Oh shit" Victoria said.

"Is this live feed?" Theresa asked the operator.

"It is ma'am" The operator said.

"Those people were getting slaughtered by those zombies and beasts! Where are the independent forces? Shouldn't they handle this!?" Ryan asked Theresa.

The scene refocused to some people approaching the military base presumably in desperate attempt to seek a safe place, some armed men came out of the base and proceed to talked with few of them. Some of the presumably refugees even begged on their knees, the soldiers talked about something for a bit before they raised their guns and immediately opened fire to the refugees. Everyone that watched the live feed widen their eyes in horror, some of those refugees were kids!

"Monsters, all of them!" Victoria said in contempt.

"There's no hope in saving those civilians...Ryan, your unit second part of the training is officially cancelled. You and your men is needed on this mission, all of you will deploy on Tuesday" Theresa said to Ryan.

"This isn't the plan, Theresa! No plan survived first contact intact, you ever heard of that? If you do, I know you have few backup plan at your disposal! This is too risky!" Ryan argued with her.

"This is the only one we got, Ryan. We are spreaded thin and we need everyone that could fight" Theresa argued back.

"Do you honestly think that my unit is ready!?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"They are...I have been monitoring The Vikings, they are ready and you believe me when I said so. I'm a veteran, so was Victoria and Himeko. The three of us agreed that you guys is sufficient on taking on this mission...Ryan, I understand you value the safety of your men, but have faith in them would you?" Theresa urged Ryan to consider the situation.

It was true that Ryan valued the safety of his men above all else, but was he grown to overprotective of them that he restricted their growth? Sooner or later, Vikings will have to deploy in combat operations and there's nothing he could do about it. The things that concerned him the most was that they still had to deploy without their armor, that didn't really put much confidence on Ryan...But Theresa was right, he need to at least have faith on them that they were all suitable for executing this mission.

"...Fine. The Vikings will took this mission, I want details" Ryan said to Theresa.

"Splendid...As we can see here, that base is the key to this mission. Significant AA presence that base has would be problematic for our Valkyries to deploy safely, your task is to assault that base, take it over then hold it until The Valkyries are done with their mission. Won't be easy for a first mission, but you guys knew what to do" Theresa explained to Ryan.

"What will we the girls do, ma'am?" Fuuka asked Theresa.

"Your objective is simple, deploy into that town, find the source of that Honkai eruption, mark it then fall back. Your priority is to find the source, not to engage them. Once you do, rendezvous with The Vikings on that base then we will pull you out...If forced to, we got permission from Schicksal Far East HQ to launch Honkai Fission Missile...I pray that we don't have to do that" Theresa said solemnly.

"Furthermore, there's something you need to be aware of. Anti-Entropy forces had engaged with ours not that far from that island, we don't know where they coming from but there's a possibility that they will show up on that island...If you do, do not engage" Victoria said.

"Huh? Why? Weren't we trained to deal with them eventually?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Yes, but with the clusterfuck you're about to head into then engaging them isn't a smart move...But, if you're fired upon then you are cleared to fight back" Victoria smiled bitterly.

"Well that covers everything for now, Fuuka you're dismissed. Ryan, we still have something to talk about, you'll stay here" Theresa said.

Fuuka gave salute, nodded her head at Ryan then proceeded to exit the control center, once she's outside then Himeko quickly handed Ryan a file that had the word Operation: Cash back on it. Ryan was confused at best, why would she handed him this?

"Get straight to the point okay, I'm tired" Ryan said in even tone.

"We got a lead that Howard have been working behind Schicksal's back, it is possible that his aim is to kill you and your men...You have the option to either follow this through as normal or receive a special directive on what to do with him, what says you?" Victoria asked Ryan.

"I see...It seems I would have to make the decision that will determine my future right now. Then this is my answer! That bastard want us dead? Well he better be ready for his own funded recruits might just be able to take him out easily!" Ryan declared to the three womens.

"Figure you'd say that, that's why we have another mission prepared. Schicksal's High Command have been suspecting him since the commission of Project Asgard itself, he may provided the necessary funds but he was not that fully aware or contributed to the program other than the financial support. So they looked into his account, they found several links toward unknown sources that would be very likely to be owned by Anti-Entropy, he was deemed expendable and you guys have the honor to carry out this assassination" Theresa said to Ryan.

"Huh, so they had been playing along all this time with Howard...Well, all things considered, killing the said guy is fine and all but who will take over as the project leader?" Ryan asked the three womens.

"You already met her" A female voice was heard.

From Ryan's back, someone was walking and approaching the group. Purple haired woman wearing lab jacket, business suit undrrneath it and pencil skirt stared at Ryan as he widen his eyes. That woman was no other than Jill, the one that accompanied Howard five days ago in their visit. She smirked as she put her hands on her hips, she then winked while Ryan opened the file that Himeko handed him. It was an operation to assassinate Howard and it was filed by none other than Jill herself, someone who Schicksal entrusted Project Asgard to when they have eliminated Howard.

"Cliché as it is, its my job to ensure the program keeps running after Howard die and manage the financial wealth he has or soon to be, had" Jill said while smirking.

"What the fuck happened while we're gone for five days?" Ryan asked with serious doubtful tone.

* * *

Weapon Trivia

Rocket Propelled Grenade Model 10 (RPG10): It was the redesigned RPG7 being used by fornerly Soviet armed forces for anti-tank purpose, this current model provided were lighter and easily one of the easiest procured anti-tank weapon worldwide. Not much changed could be observed on RPG10 except its modern futuristic design, wide range of ammunition available to it and apparently the built in scope for medium range engagements. It's ofteen seen in the hands of independent groups or insurgents, but since it's pretty reliable weapons that it makes any vehicle vulnerable when faced with it. It even able to shot down heavily arnored Albatross dropship if it hits in the right spot.

* * *

Preview for the next chapter (The Fallen Knight)

"It was a happy past that we got"

"That pretty much confirmed it, I lost everything up until seven years old"

"So, Ryan-kun...About that mission we're about to execute. I need a favor from you"

"Greetings, Ryan. I suppose we have to talk in the end"

"Ryan! Get the fuck up!"

"Hold it, we're going into the conclusion a bit too fast"

"The fact that this was all happening in the same time is no mere coincidence!"

"Your mother didn't wished it, but fate was known for not being merciful"

"Operation: Dawnbreaker is a go, repeat, Operation: Dawnbreaker is a go!"

"Mei? Kiana? Bronya? Please respond!"


	7. The Fallen Knight

_Thanks for the review, follow and favorite guys. This one a bit late due to how annoying college life could be, anyway onto the story!_

* * *

"Thank you for your patronage!" A girl said.

Smiling kindly, Ryan took his groceries filled bag with him then he walked out of the convenience store that was located near his apartment. He whistled as he walked through the sidewalk, his eyes wander to random things occasionally. It didn't took long for him to reached his apartment, unlocked the door, entered, closed the door, took off his shoes, walked to the kitchen, put the groceries on the refrigerator, made a glass of warm coffee then seated himself in the living room's sofa. He turned on the 21 inch flat screen second hand TV, flipped through some random channels with the remote control.

"Don't you know, this nail polish-" Beauty products? Nah.

"This River Bass is quite the fighter! The fishing rod even bends in-" Fishing channel? Not in the mood.

"How does it feels to chew five gums?" Condom ads? Seriously?

"Ah, it seems the lead role for the infamous drama Let's Fall In Love, Fubuki Hoshijiro took an absent for-" Gossip? No.

"The marvelous structural engineering on-" Educational channel? Ryan had enough for this week.

"Back on E-sports channel, the infamous Vermin21 and Henshin0 is currently engaged in fierce firefight! Vermin wields his trademark F4000 Assault Rifle while Henshin only has an M90 SMG! Both weapons are equally deadly on its own right, both has high bullet counts and amazing rate of fire! Range is the main issue in this situation, it seems the fight is in favor toward Vermin. Both players is among the top ten players on this battle royale game, but this is the first time they meet each other in direct combat so I'm excited to see how it goes!" E-sport channel? Hell yes.

The fight was intense, both sides were willing to waste high amount of ammo in order to take down one another. It was an interesting fight, but Ryan was also involved in one that ended eighteen hours ago...He lacked sleep, his eyes were heavy but he was stubborn enough to stay awake. The reason was quite ridiculous to some people, he was waiting for the announcement for Doom 4 game release and when it did he will immediately purchase an online copy.

There's a bonus for those that purchased it within an hour after it launched, it was a character skin that Ryan think was badass and want to use it on multiplayer match...But who was he kidding, his brain didn't took shit from anyone, not even himself, so even the caffeine boost he got from the coffee wasn't cutting for it…It didn't took long for him to feel content on the couch and he slowly closed his eyes, the air-conditioned room was the perfect stimulant in persuading him to just go to sleep like some black cat in a video game used to said to the main character.

"KYAAAAA!"

BRAK!

CRASH!

A girl's scream followed by something breaking, that was all it took for Ryan to jolted awaken with red eyes. He immediately rushed outside his apartment through the front door and looked to the right, there he noticed both Sakura and Kallen who were in their pajamas looked into their apartment with frightened expression. Ryan also noticed that their other neighbors poked their head out from their respective doors to see what was the noise about, Ryan took initiative by approaching the girls first.

"...What happened?" Ryan asked before yawning.

"S-Something crawled on my left leg Ryan! I don't know what it is, my first instinct is to get out as soon as I can!" Sakura said while trembling.

"It was some creature! I saw it crawling around before I ran with Sakura!" Kallen said to Ryan.

"...Description and location?" Ryan asked in even tone due to his sleepiness.

"Living room, it was oval shaped and colored black!" Kallen said.

Both Sakura and Kallen witnessed Ryan who went back inside his apartment, grabbed what seemed to be an old magazine, head into the girls apartment without any hint of hesitation or fear. The girls stayed outside, it looked like Ryan knew what was he doing so they better left this problem with him. The said young man knew well what was the creature that the girls mentioned, it's obviously a cockroach. Don't ever underestimate the mysterious power this creature wields, it's fully capable in casting unreasonable terror to anyone. It also capable of flight, what made it worse was the fact that it usually fly like a Japanese pilot doing kamikaze back on World War Two.

The cockroach made a dash to the couch and Ryan spotted his target, he controlled his breathing, rolled the old magazine and he waited for quite a bit because he knew that something will happen. That cockroach moved as he predicted, it flew off and try to land on Ryan's face. However in split second, Ryan swung the rolled magazine with all his might that resulted the cockroach to be sent flying out of control and landed on the floor. It was a resilient creature, despite being hit by a makeshift stick on high speed it still managed to moved around like it wasn't affected by that strike.

"...So be it" Ryan declared in low tone.

Ryan get on his knees and without any sort of restraint swiped the creature like a golf ball to the wall, he was able to harmed it because the cockroach was now lying upside down on the floor and weak but desperately tried to get back on its feet. Ryan took a plastic bag from the kitchen counter, put the cockroach inside, sealed it and then walked out toward Kallen and Sakura. He showed them on what he caught, both girls immediately cringed and leaned their body away from the makeshift cage that Ryan held. He walked to the trash bin on the side of the apartment building, threw the bag and walked back.

"See? Problem solved. Its safe now" Ryan said to the girls.

"Glad you could help us, Ryan. How can we repay you?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Then please be quiet so I could finally sleep comfortably" Ryan said as he walked back inside his apartment and closed the door.

He didn't wait for any sort of respond from the girls, his body was moving on autopilot toward his bed and he immediately fell asleep as soon as his face hit the pillow, finally some comfortable bed instead of dirt and hard bag filled with equipment as a pillow. Ryan felt like he's supposed to be doing something before he went and deal with his neighbor problem, but since he couldn't remember what, he might as well go to sleep for real...Ryan slept until seven in the morning, solid ten hours sleep had rejuvenated him. He walked to the living room when he remembered on what he missed, then he sat on the sofa while facepalming hard.

"…I missed that one in a lifetime opportunity" Ryan lamented.

He realized that lamenting his loss would not do him any good, he bought the game, installed it then Ryan took his towel and proceed to shower. On the apartment next door, Sakura and Kallen both had awaken and now both were seated on dinning chair while eating their freshly cooked breakfast, it consisted of rice with egg rolls, sausage, vegetables and miso soup. Both were now elated after a good night sleep, knowing that the cockroach threat was taken care off. So, they will come with Mei and Bronya to Kiana's house in order to learn what happened between Kiana and Ryan in the past.

"To think both of them had met when they were kids, it was a reunion between childhood friends...Though, it was unfortunate that Ryan forgot about her" Sakura said to Kallen.

"Even though it's not on purpose, having someone important to you forgot about you definitely hurts...Kiana never spoke about Ryan" Kallen said to Sakura.

"Not even for a bit?" Sakura curiously asked Kallen.

"Actually now that I think about it…She did mentioned him several times, with 'dummy' as a nickname. I was a kid at that time, I don't really understand" Kallen said while smiling bitterly.

They resumed eating in silence when someone knocked their apartment front door, both Sakura and Kallen looked at each other before Kallen decided to answer the door. She got up and immediately head to the door and opened it, it was Mei and Bronya. Both of them was dressed in casual cloth, she wore dark red turtle neck sweater with blue skirt and thigh high socks while Bronya wore blue hoodie and black leggings.

"Oh hey, you both came here too early though" Kallen said.

"Can't help it, we planned to leave before nine anyway" Mei said while smiling.

Bronya suddenly went off and knocked on Ryan's apartment door, both Kallen and Mei were confused to say the least. They did planned to leave together alongside the young man, though it won't be a surprise if he's still asleep on his bed. He's exhausted yesterday, no doubt he will collapse if he stay awake for another two hours after Kallen last saw him. The front door was opened, Ryan immediately faced with Bronya who was looking at his face before her eyes trailed down.

He only wore a white towel that covered his crotch, giving the girls some morning eye candy to feast on. Mei and Kallen blushed a bit as they carefully inspected Ryan's hard muscles exposed in the open, from his toned chest, tight biceps, nicely shaped six pack abs and even his toned legs. This was the first time both Mei and Kallen saw an almost naked guy in real life, it was quite the stimulating experience for the girls in puberty.

After what it feels like an eternity (It was three seconds in reality), Ryan cocked his eyebrows before he noticed the two ladies ogling him. Ryan smiled deviously as he leaned on the door way, he also flexed biceps for extra emphasize.

"What do you think, ladies? You can give them a rub if you want" Ryan said, with a gruff tone.

"U-Um, I'll pass" Kallen said while smiling uneasily.

"Unfortunately, me too" Mei said while scratching her right cheek.

"Shame, but oh well…So Bronya, what is it?" Ryan asked Bronya.

"…Bronya wants to run a test drive before we go into Kiana's house" Bronya simply said.

It was cryptic at the very best, Ryan couldn't helped himself to stared at Bronya with a confused expression before he remembered on what was Bronya asked before he went to train and what was he supposed to do last night. He was sure that Bronya already bought it, so why would she requested to play his? Maybe she didn't have the time, now he felt sorry since he's in the middle of installing them.

"You know…I kind of forgot to purchase it early, I purchased it this morning and it was in the middle of installation process. You could play something else though, my steam account littered with tons of content" Ryan said while shrugging.

"Will do, then please excuse Bronya for intruding" Bronya said as she entered the apartment.

"You two could join in once you're done, I'll dress up in the meantime" Ryan said to Kallen and Mei.

Bronya entered Ryan's apartment and the owner himself went back inside to put on some clothes, Mei and Kallen were left in the hallway. Kallen looked awkward while Mei sighed a bit after the experience, this definitely gave them a good heart exercise.

"You go on ahead, I haven't finished my breakfast yet" Kallen said to Mei.

"Oh, alright then" Mei said as she entered Ryan's apartment.

"…I wasn't hungry anymore though" Kallen muttered to herself.

Mei entered the apartment, it will be the first time she would be inside of Ryan's apartment. She faced an ordinary apartment living room, with two couches, a coffee table, a dresser with a flat screen TV on it. In the right corner, Bronya was seated in front of a gaming PC. The left corner seemed like a working table, it had few shelves filled by tools, some kind of chemical bottles and Mei spotted several box of ammo on it…That must be the place where Ryan maintained his gun, the desk surface looked worn out indicated that it was used often.

The air smelled like orange, yeah that's because of that small stuff Ryan hanged on his AC. But Mei also noted subtle hints of gunpowder, she frowned a bit as she saw two empty Jack Daniels cans beside one of the couch. She decided to check the kitchen, she noticed that the sink was clean…Mei decided to knocked the closed door that she presumed was Ryan's bedroom.

"Ryan-kun, did you eat dinner last night?" Mei asked him.

"Huh? No I didn't, I only bought the ingredients" Ryan answered.

"I see" Mei replied.

Mei returned to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, she inspected the content before she took some out and placed it on the counter. She took a hanged black apron from a nearby chair, put it on, grabbed a frying pan and she put cooking oil on it. She decided to make a simple breakfast for Ryan, Mei then started cracking few eggs.

Ryan decided to wear light blue shirt with black T-shirt worn underneath it and a black trouser. He got out from his room and heard the sound of sizzling pan alongside something been fried, he cocked his eyebrows as he inspected the kitchen and found Mei was cooking something. It happened Mei was turning around when Ryan did so, she immediately broke into a smile as she chopped some vegetables on the cutting board.

"Hey, I took the liberty to make breakfast for you" Mei said while smiling.

"You're too kind, you don't have to Mei I could do it myself" Ryan said while smiling uneasily.

"It's fine, don't worry about it. I'll be done soon" Mei said while smiling.

Ryan only nodded his head then sit on the dining chair while watching Bronya play Ace Combat 7 from distance, Ryan's expression shown that he felt bad about Mei cooking his breakfast but deep down inside he was throwing victory dance and figurative middle finger to his teammates. You don't have to? I could do it myself? Big Fat Fucking Lie, there's no straight man on earth that would dare to pass the food that beautiful girl cook. Then why did Ryan said that to her? Formality, of course! He need to keep his image, can't be seen too goddamn happy with it.

Not long after that Mei came in front of him and handed him his plate filled breakfast, it was scrambled eggs, sandwich with slice of ham on it complemented with slice of cheddar cheese, cabbage and tomato slice on it. Mei also put down a glass of milk beside it…Ryan mouth was slightly agape, she did all of this in the span of less than twenty minutes? The dish smells alone was mouth watering, he couldn't wait for the taste!

"Here you go, enjoy, Ryan-kun!" Mei said.

"Don't mind if I do!" Ryan said as he prepared to devour his breakfast.

Ryan took a huge bite, chewed and swallowed the sandwich before he seated there in silence as he stared at the sandwich on his hand. He tried the scrambled eggs, he picked a spoon, took a huge serving and fed his mouth with it. He gulped down the breakfast under five minutes while Mei stood beside him, she was quite astonished that Ryan managed to ate her cooking that fast…He must have been very hungry.

"Mei?" Ryan called her name.

"Yes Ryan-kun? Is something wrong?" Mei asked Ryan.

"How much do I have to sacrifice so I could eat your cooking everyday?" Ryan asked Mei with a straight face.

"Ara ara, ufufufufu…I'm glad you liked it, you only need to ask if you want to and I'll whip something up" Mei said to Ryan in soft tone.

"I'll be sure to let you know" Ryan said as he smiled at Mei.

.

The group was done with their morning activities and they immediately head to Kiana's house, it wasn't far from the apartment but it was quite the hassle with the route they had to took. Soon after, they arrived and Mei pressed the door bell. Kiana heard the bell rings and she immediately head to the front door, she opened it and everyone was there. Ryan, Sakura, Bronya, Mei and Kallen waved at her, Kiana smiled a bit before she stepped aside.

"Well, come on in guys!" Kiana said while smiling.

Everyone came inside then Kiana closed the door, all of the gathered on the living room. Kiana, Mei and Bronya sat together on the couch while Ryan, Kallen and Sakura sat on another couch in front of them. Enjoying the snacks on the table between them, Kiana started her tale on Ryan's past alongside telling him on what Siegfried and Cecilia told her to relay to Ryan.

So Ryan was born and lived on Southwestern Germany prior to Second Honkai Impact, they lived on a small town near the border. Apparently, Ryan's actual birth year was 1997 instead of 1998 that was stated on his profile in Schicksal's database. The cause for this error was the fact that all records of him was destroyed when the said town went up in flames, thus he made that mistake when filling any form of registration…That means he was eighteen years old this whole time, quite old for a first year high school student.

Fredrick Taurus and Siegfried Kaslana were two good friends with both of them being Schicksal Knights, strangely though Fredrick was not that well known compared to Siegfried. Kiana was told by Siegfried that their specialization was a bit different, Siegfried was specialized in frontal direct assault while Fredrick was more known to use stealth in his work. They did often cross paths with each other and that's how they became friends.

During the final hours of Second Honkai Impact, Cecilia was sent by Schicksal to dueled The Second Herrscher on a site called Babylon's Tower. It was practically a suicide mission for her and if she fails, Schicksal would launch Honkai Fission Missile to that site. Cecilia only managed to fallback when Fredrick came out of nowhere and started engaging The Second Herrscher by himself, Cecilia planned to help before she herself teleported to an area near Schicksal's decimated forward base by unknown means.

Before she teleported, she remembered that Fredrick thrown her something. It was a necklace of a bull head craving made from platinum, a trademark that Fredrick wore on him as a semblance of his last name which on horoscope the name Taurus was associated with a bull. No goodbye message, no dramatic partings, that necklace told her everything. Until this day, she had no idea why he chose to save her. Then she heard of a large explosion that came from Honkai Fission Missile explosions, she was certain that Fredrick was no longer on this world.

She managed to return to the headquarters, she was severely reprimanded for abandoning the mission. She gave every reasonable excuse and thus she was relieved of duty for several months, she checked on Siegfried who were severely wounded in the final fight before she went off in search for Kiana. Kiana herself was at loss sometimes, how close she came to lose her mother and father on that day but instead it was Ryan who lost his father in effort to save Cecilia.

They didn't succeed in tracking Ryan's and Aurora's whereabouts, it didn't helped with the fact that Aurora was declared AWOL and suspected of betrayal. They only heard that during Southern Japan invasion, she was founded by UNAF. Though, as Cecilia and Siegfried went to that site to investigate, her trace of existence disappeared like smoke. No one know where she was, not UNAF or Schicksal.

Ryan was not convinced however, it's obvious that Schicksal had something to do with his mother. Even if she's not with them, they're the reason that she went underground if she lives. This also means that one way or another, Schicksal was still the main key in accessing her records or for him to progress into their investigation. Ryan's objective did not changed for a bit, still he thanked Kiana for shedding some light into his past and he subtly put the recorder on his pocket to halt.

"…How do you feel, Ryan?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"…Complicated, I guess…It made sense now…But that still didn't explained how I lose seven years of my early life" Ryan said while smiling bitterly.

"Well, only Auntie Aurora that might knew about it and she disappeared…Knowing her though. Maybe, your mother didn't wished it, but fate was known for not being merciful…That's what my mother said, at least" Kiana said while frowning.

"Yeah, she must've pretty good reason why she didn't tell me...That pretty much confirmed it, I lost everything up until seven years old…How was it, Kiana? Back then when we used to play together?" Ryan asked curiously.

"It was a happy past that we got, so much time spend on playing…whether it's outside or inside my house, we used to play so much…At least that was before our elementary school year started, even then every seasonal vacation you would visit…I used to wait for you to come and play, that's why I could wait as long as I have to!" Kiana said while grinning.

"I see…Kiana, we don't have to start over from the beginning. I promised that I would came back in the past right? Well, although I'm not whole hundred percent, but here I am" Ryan said while smiling.

"Yes…It's so much better to see you alive like this even after what happened…Welcome back, Ryan" Kiana said.

All in all it ends well for both of them, there's no need for Kiana to be reserved around him anymore and Ryan was now aware of what the hell happened on his past. Everyone smiled with the conclusion of the talk, Kallen then looked at Kiana who was munching a chocolate chips cookie.

"Well, I guess now we all knew what happened between you two in the past. Thanks for sharing, Kiana" Kallen said.

"Eh no biggie, I kind of held back this story from all of you. You all are my friends, you have the right to know" Kiana grinned at Kallen.

"We got what we came for, but its not even eleven o'clock…Any suggestions on what we should do?" Sakura asked everyone.

"…Games?" Bronya suggested to everyone.

"I'm not complaining, do you have something we all could play with Kiana-chan?" Mei asked Kiana.

"…Uno or Monopoly?" Kiana asked while smiling nervously.

Everyone except Kiana immediately sweatdropped, the games available could immediately break the friendship that Kiana and Ryan just restored. Uno, this card game was the primary suspect of being the case where best friends stabbed each other in the back. Monopoly, the game could disintegrate an entire group's integrity and friendship in a single match…Why would humanity created these games?

"Is that it? Those games are friendship breakers!" Ryan said with half closed eyes.

"It's all I got okay!" Kiana said.

"Alright then, vote time! Those who agreed to play monopoly?" Kallen asked everyone.

Almost everyone raised their hand except Ryan, the young man sighed before he finally raised his hand too…So monopoly it is, the board was drawn out and everyone got their pieces except for Mei who opted as the banker. The reason she was chosen? Simple really, she's not good when it comes to extortion and generally she's a kind young lady.

Early rounds into the game, it was already a mess. Bronya dominated everyone by becoming the quickest to own multiple business, Ryan was stuck on jail in every rotation so he was falling behind, Kallen was not in a bad position as she's slightly behind Bronya in terms of richness, Sakura was planning on purchasing an entire complex area to monopoly the said territory, Kiana was lagging slightly behind but at least she already got a strategic block in her hands.

But as they quickly reaching climax of the game, things starting to heat up…a lot. Bronya and Kiana was currently bickering about the fact Kiana can't pay to Bronya and had to sell off one of her assets, Sakura and Kallen was in heated discussion on the ridiculous emplacement of Sakura's property that was hindering Kallen's conquest in the area and vice versa. Amidst all that, Mei was staring hard at Ryan who was beside her in effort to make Ryan pay up for his overwhelming debt. Ryan himself could only looked away from her with only few bills left on his hand.

"Ryan-kun, I need you to hand over your money" Mei said in sweet tone.

"I'm sorry but this is the only few I have left to survive this month! I beg you, let me-"

"Hey! Who's the bad girl that's trying to extort someone? I'll have you know that I won't tolerate that in my house!"

Cecilia went inside with grocery bags and discovered six teenagers was looking at her with monopoly board in front of them, Cecilia took in the whole picture for a bit before she realized that it was all just a game. Cecilia felt that her imagination was being overly active for a while there, guess she need to stop jumping into conclusion in the future.

"My apologies, I was mistaken" Cecilia said while smiling.

"Mom, you've been watching too much drama lately" Kiana said with half opened eyes.

"I guess, ufufufufufu. Anyway, let's have dinner together. I bought a lot of things on purpose when I heard everyone was coming over" Cecilia said.

"I'll help, Cecilia-san" Mei said then she stood up.

"Thank you, Mei" Cecilia said while smiling.

"Dinner? At noon?" Ryan asked Cecilia.

"What are you talking about? It's five o'clock already" Cecilia said with confused gaze.

The five of them looked at Cecilia with the same confusion then they checked the window and saw that the sky already shown shades of orange, surprised was the right word to described their faces. Mei was the only one among them who realized how long they have been playing, yeah being the banker was absolutely boring so she decided she will be a player next time they have another game of monopoly.

"Whoa! We are too absorbed that we didn't realized we've been playing this for almost six hours!" Kallen said in complete surprise.

.

Everyone left in the evening after eating dinner that Cecilia and Mei made, it was fulfilling and god what a delicious dinner that was. Ryan walked back to his apartment with a smile on his face, he twiddled with the necklace given to him by Cecilia. Something to remember his father by, it's not a photo but Ryan supposed it will do just fine. Both Sakura and Kallen had some shopping to do, even though Ryan offered to accompany them he was told that it was 'girls' business.

What were they buying? Underwear? That would probably be embarrassing for them if he saw what would they wore underneath their clothes…Kallen or Sakura though, any kind of underwear would fit them just right. Ryan shook his head and tapped his cheeks twice, why would he perv on his neighbors? Must be the hormones talking. He reached his apartment, like usual he made some drink and then sat on the couch with TV on…He might need to rest up, tomorrow he would plan an assault.

All of a sudden, he noticed something moves on his peripheral vision and he immediately brandished his M1911H then aimed at whatever it is with safety's off. What stands before him was a tall man, short spiky blonde hair, green emerald eyes and he wore black trench coat. Whoever this man was, he was the same one Ryan saw back when he went with Sakura to KFC. Ryan stood up from his seat, eyes never leaving the man with his finger on the trigger of his gun.

"If you're trying to rob off this apartment, I hate to break it to you but this place doesn't have any valuables to steal" Ryan said to the man.

"That gaming PC looks expensive though" The said man said while snickering.

"Touch that and I won't hesitate to put a bullet in your head" Ryan said in serious tone.

"Heh…You ever kill a man before, boy?" The man asked Ryan.

"Lost track of how many I've killed, all just for survival" Ryan answered the man.

The man inspected Ryan from head to toe…His eyes were focused on his target, no hesitation detected on it even for a moment. His finger was on the trigger, there's no doubt he'll pull the trigger if he had to. His stance was an alert one, he made sure that he could move either to dodge or assault the man if needed to. The said man was impressed, Ryan didn't seemed to bluff when he said he'll kill him if he tries anything funny. The man suddenly chuckled leaving Ryan confused for a second, he still won't let his guard down though.

"Something funny you want to share?" Ryan asked with his right eyebrow raised.

"So you're Aurora's son, never thought you'd take after your mother's face" The man said to Ryan.

"You knew my mother, huh" Ryan said.

"We used to…work together, you see. I'd recognized her face anywhere, yours bear a strong resemblance to her. That's how I knew you are her son" The man said while smiling.

This immediately sent Ryan's alarm sense into overdrive, someone that connected to his mother suddenly showing up on his apartment? Why now? What was this guy want from him? Realizing this could go on for a while, Ryan opted for the shortcut since he wanted to get straight to the point.

"Get to the point, what do you want?" Ryan asked impatiently.

"Whoo, impatient aren't you? Well, relax boy, I just want to talk" The man said while smiling.

"…Pull anything funny and there won't be a second time, I don't care if you're my mother's coworker in the past. Trust is hard to come by these days, especially if someone approached me and claimed they knew something about my family" Ryan said, threat clearly hanging on his tone.

"…Understandable, it's a tough world we live in" The man smiled bitterly.

Ryan lowered his gun and sheathed it, he seated himself on the sofa while sipping the coffee he made few minutes ago. Ryan noticed the man just stand where he was while looking at Ryan with a hint of amusement on his face, Ryan cocked his eyebrows while nudging the glass he had on his right hand.

"Drinks?" Ryan asked the man.

"Won't be long, don't need one" The man said while smiling.

"Suit yourself…And, what do you want to talk about?" Ryan asked the man.

"You're given a mission to kill someone named Howard, the one who in charge of Project Asgard funding, yes?" The man asked Ryan.

Narrowing his eyes, Ryan stared at the man with absolute suspicion on his eyes. He was confused on how the hell this guy knew regarding that mission which supposed only he and other few knew, one thing for certain was this guy somehow connected with Schicksal one way or another. Ryan made a mental note to be careful with this guy, he wouldn't want to mess with his chances.

"…How did you know?" Ryan asked the man.

"Don't sweat the small details boy, all you need to know is that I'm aware of that mission. You see, I need something from him. Specifically, a ledger that he always carry with him. It's a small black notebook with wording 'Tennessee' written with golden ink on its cover" The man said with serious expression on his face.

"And you want me to get this for you?" Ryan confirmed on his request.

"Frankly, yes" The man said while nodding his head.

"That means I would be in significant danger because this will means I'm dealing behind Schicksal's back, what do you offer in return? Convince me and I might do this for you" Ryan said while cross-legging his legs.

"Right, I suppose so…Now, you'll get three rewards if you manage to pull this off…One, you're free to look or even copy the content of that notebook and use it for your own goals. Two, I'll get you a way to an information broker on Soukai with hacking abilities. Three, I'll introduce you to someone who used to work with Aurora and me, she's her best friend" The man said while smiling.

Dangerous jobs requires handsome compensation, Ryan found the rewards to be quite pleasing. He could get information from that notebook, he'll be able to get in contact with information broker and he'll meet his mother's best friend. All in all it's a deal well suited to his condition, almost too well suited that it made him worried for a bit. But he had to take the risk, he didn't have any alternatives for now.

"…Alright, that sounds like a sweet deal. I'll get you this notebook, how am I going to inform you when I do?" Ryan asked the man.

"You'll know when the time is right, Ryan. I suppose we got ourselves a deal?" The man asked Ryan.

"Fine" Ryan simply answered.

"Excellent, good doing business with you young man" The man smiled at Ryan.

"What am I suppose to call you? I need to know who I'm dealing with" Ryan asked the man.

The man smiled then he started walking to Ryan's balcony window, he realized that Ryan won't let him go without giving him his name. He did have an alias he could give to Ryan, he was certain Ryan won't forget about it either.

"…Just call me, Hai" The man said.

"…Shark, in Slavic language. Hello, in Indonesian or Malay language" Ryan squinted his eyes.

"You know a lot of things huh?" Hai said while smiling.

"…I read bunch of random stuff sometimes" Ryan shrugged as he said that.

"Hahaha, I see…Well then, until next time" Hai smirked.

Just as he said that, Hai opened the apartment's balcony window and dropped down without any hesitation. Ryan was thrown off guard as he went out to check on Hai, there was no trace of him anywhere. How the fuck did he pulled that stunt? This was eleventh floor for god sake, he'll kill himself if he landed on the ground from this height.

Ryan closed the window while shaking his head, he hoped that tonight won't get any weirder than this. So apparently that guy somehow knew regarding the mission to assassinate Howard, that mission was supposed to be a secret even among Schicksal personnel…Ryan felt stupid for not asking Hai's allegiance, that would answer several questions he had regarding him. The more he tries to find the truth regarding his family. The more he got involved with dangerous business like this, what have he gotten himself into this time?

Hai smiled while walking away from Ryan's apartment, he reached an intersection where he waited for a bit for the crossing light to turn into green. Hai was walking when he received an incoming call on his phone, the contact only registered as 'Amore' on the screen had a picture of green haired lady styled in pony tail, she wore red glasses that hide the blue eyes behind it.

"Hai, did you secure a deal with him?" The woman asked Hai.

"Yeah, I did…Just like you said, there's no way he will pass this chance up" Hai said to the woman while smiling.

"I see, it will be a dangerous job for him…How was he?" The woman asked Hai.

"Who? Ryan Taurus? A fine healthy young man with mean glares and didn't afraid to waste someone if he wants to…All in all though, he seemed to have a normal life. He goes to school as scheduled, he goes on dates and he have a part time job on a restaurant" Hai said as he recounted on what he saw.

"Hmmm…you have been observing him closely. And you're supposed to be there no longer than a month" The woman said in amused tone.

"Yeah…guess so…I'm ready for extraction" Hai said to the woman.

"Zone 21, by the red bookstore. We got a vehicle ready for you" The woman said to Hai.

"Understood, moving now" Hai said as he walked to the place the woman mentioned.

.

The next day, Ryan alongside Sakura and Kallen went to school together, attended morning classes, took a nice lunch break with everyone while talking about random things and then assembled in a briefing room for operations. Thirty Vikings and Forty-four Valkyries from each batches were gathered in the auditorium styled room, in front of them was Ryan as Viking representative and someone named Namira Gallagher who was a third year Valkyrie.

Namira would be the one in charge for The Valkyries in the mission they will about to do, it all depends on her leadership. This orange haired girl with pig tail hairstyle and brown eyes was known as the most skilled Valkyries among the third year, she used a spear as her main weapon against The Honkai. The said girl was now currently looking at Ryan, she's interested in the said young man.

She heard a lot of rumors about him, how he survived an invasion, how good he was with a gun to how apparently the best Valkyries on the first year could be seen always near him. However, she concluded that rumors were known to be exaggerated so she planned to see for her own in how skilled he was.

"Greetings Ryan, I suppose we have to talk in the end" Namira said to Ryan.

"Yeah…so you're the current head for The Valkyrie Trainees" Ryan said with his arms folded.

"And you're the leader of the experimental assault unit…I heard a lot about you" Namira said while smiling.

"What kind of news you heard about me?" Ryan asked curiously.

"Don't worry, mostly the good ones" Namira said while grinning.

"…That means there's some bad ones circulating around too" Ryan smiled uneasily.

"You're not wrong, but don't worry about it for now…Attention! The meeting is officially started!" Namira announced to the audience.

The room immediately quiet down, Namira turned on the holographic projector that shown the image layout of the island they're about to deploy tomorrow. Ryan glanced at the island's military base, it wasn't a big base but it still possess severe threat level due to their anti air defense system, it will be their job to neutralize it.

"We are gathered here today in order to plan our operation tomorrow, the first part would be The Viking's assault. I'll leave this part on you commander" Namira said.

"Thank you, alright make sure you had this remembered or noted. Our objective is simple and our method is vice versa, we will deploy using Charon transports and fly at low altitude. Due to the geographical situation and the enemy base location, we will deploy from the western side that coincidentally would conceal us from the rising sun. Yes, we are attacking at dawn so you better get some sleep tonight!" Ryan said to his men specifically.

The image zoomed in toward the base and shown in at as a 3D model, Ryan rotated the image to give the audience the exact imaging of the base outer layout. There's command center, barracks complex, armory, vehicle garages and a hangar bay.

"It's not a large base but it was surrounded by seven meters tall, three meters thick concrete wall. Supplemented by networks of Surface to Air Missiles defense network with enough range to cover the entire island, overall it's a hornets nest. To make matters worse, it also has a vehicle depot and even a hangar bay so they could even deploy some vehicle to defend themselves" Ryan said to the audience.

Ryan placed three dropship icon on three location of the base, two on top of the wall on the base southern and northern position while the third was on the command center. It represents their landing zone, they will split into three teams and stormed the base. Capturing the base quickly was essential, taking too long could result in several inconveniences.

"Time is of the essence, the girls can't wait forever outside the Area of Operation and that's why we would need to be quick and decisive. Three Charons would deploy in three different Landing Zones, two would deploy on top of the walls while another one would land near the command center. Satellite reconnaissance revealed that there's at least one hundred and fifty personnel inside this base, we need to take them all out…that's the gist of it, you may carry on, leader" Ryan said to Namira.

"Alright…As soon as The Vikings gives the greenlight, we will immediately head straight into the town. We will land on the walled area of this police station, from there we will make our way toward the source of Honkai energy eruption. Once we find it, we are to mark it then evacuate from the island. We need to do this as soon as possible" Namira said to the audience.

The image changed to the town's layout, it was a small town on plains near the hill where the military base was located. The town's police station located near the outskirt and covered with walls, it's parking lot had a space large enough for a Charon to set down.

"Our support for this mission would be the insertion Charon transports, they are what we got for close air support. If things goes south really bad, then Honkai Fission Missile would be launched as containment procedure. The entire island will be engulfed in the explosion, that would be the worst possible scenario if we fail" Namira said to the audience.

The rest of the meeting involved with cross matching their plans and determined call signs, the meeting ended and everyone exited the room. The only people left on it was Ryan and Namira, both were tidying up the podium after the presentation and copying the data from the holographic projector to their phone

"Hey uh, Namira?" Ryan suddenly asked.

"Yes?" Namira responded.

"You experienced a lot of combat alongside your Valkyries, right?" Ryan asked Namira.

"Quite a lot, some were too dangerous to be done just by recruits. But Schicksal were spread thin, so I guess it was necessary. Why do you ask?" Namira asked back.

"Did you worry about those under your command during mission?" Ryan asked Namira.

This what had been plaguing Ryan's thought since morning, he realized that he will lead twenty nine young men to a dangerous situation that could cost them their lives. He's just a normal man, of course he'd be nervous with the said prospect.

"Of course, any leader that care about their underlings always did that…Sometimes, I do worry more for their own survival instead of mine during combat" Namira said to Ryan.

"I see…What did you do, to prevent it from affecting your judgment or mission?" Ryan asked further.

"What I did was to trust them, trust in their abilities to protect themselves and to get the job done. Bad things could happen anytime, I'll just try not to think about it…When it happens, then I'll adapt to it instead worrying on what will I do when it happens before it even did" Namira explained how she's able to stay focused.

"Quite simple thing to do huh" Ryan commented.

So Namria did have a method and that's to 'Don't mind it until it happens'…Ryan did it once when Gin and Him were stuck on a building being cornered by a group of hostile survivors, they need food and tried to trade then it became a bad deal when they saw Ryan possessed something they wanted but Ryan couldn't gave them.

How they survived it was by splitting off and took the survivors down by silent takedown, while he do that Ryan would have to let Gin fend for himself on the survivor's outpost looting for food. A lot of things could went wrong but Ryan believed that Gin would use everything Ryan had taught him to survive alone…It was the same this time, albeit on grander scale...

"Yes, so far it was effective for me…I thought you're no stranger when it comes to combat?" Namira asked while cocking her eyebrows.

"Me? Yeah, I am. My men? Majority of them didn't. I'm practically had been in every position imaginable, from pinned down by machine gun fire to surrounded by horde of zombies. I've experienced all that, that's why I know that something could go wrong and the result would be someone dying…I was paralyzed by the fear of failing to lead them" Ryan confessed his fear.

"All the more important to trust your men, Ryan. You're not a god, you can't control everything. That's why you need to do what you do best then trust them to handle the rest, it's all I can offer as an advice" Namira said while smiling.

"…It helps a lot, thanks" Ryan smiled back at Namira.

"You're welcome…The girls and I will be counting on you to secure that base, let's do our best" Namira said.

"Let's…If you need a place to retreat, we'll make sure the base will be ready for you girls" Ryan said while nodding his head.

"That put me at ease" Namira said while smiling.

.

Mei was leaning on the wall in an empty corridor, she had her phone in her right hand as she chatted with Kiana who asked her on where was she now. Mei replied that she's still in school and told Kiana and Bronya to go toward Celestial Clarity first, she had something to do and it won't take long. The door beside her was opened and from within the room two persons came out, they were Namira and Ryan. Both stopped and looked at Mei who stopped leaning on the wall and faced both of them, she looked serious as her usual gentle smile was absent from her beautiful face.

"Mei? What is it?" Ryan asked Mei.

"I need to speak to you Ryan-kun, alone" Mei said to Ryan.

"My cue to leave huh? Mei, don't forget to review the plan" Namira said to Mei.

"I won't, ma'am" Mei responded.

Mei was chosen as a platoon leader for one of the Valkyrie platoons that will deploy tomorrow, she was chosen to led the first years instead of Fuuka by Namira. No one except Namira herself knew the reason why, but nevertheless Mei accepted the task given to her. Namira soon entered the lift and she's gone from the corridor, it was absolutely deserted as no one remains on this area after school hours except for a meeting and theirs was the last one today.

"What do you want to talk about?" Ryan asked Mei.

"I'll get straight to the point. So, Ryan-kun…About that mission we're about to execute. I need a favor from you" Mei said.

"What kind of favor?" Ryan asked, confusion on his tone.

"…If the mission goes wrong, can I count on you to help us?" Mei asked Ryan.

"Goes wrong?" Ryan asked while cocking his eyebrows.

"…Engagement against human enemies, though unpredictable sometimes but at least we are familiar in how things played out, how the enemy commander might do to counter your action, how the enemy behave against you and you could even coerce them to surrender" Mei said to Ryan.

He had to agree with this one, its certainly whole lot easier fighting against a human rather than a Honkai creature…It's like a broken record to Ryan when he heard people said about him being a civilian who survived an invasion, but he can't dismissed the fuckton of knowledge that experience gave him. He learned what kindness is, he learned how to be ruthless, he learned many survival tricks, his morality being constantly tested and everyday was a fight for survival.

Against a human, at least they knew what surrender means. It saved a lot of life, ammo and energy whenever Ryan faced off against humans and they knew when they were beaten. Honkai creature didn't give a single damn, if you encounter one then prepare your self for combat or your lungs for long range sprint and parkour combined to escape if they're too strong.

"Yeah, you're right. It's certainly possible" Ryan said while nodding his head.

"But not against Honkai…Even thousand years later, we still have no idea on what Honkai actually is…Some regarded it as natural universe adjustment, some said it's the will of the god. It's manifestation could be a lot of things, from disease, wars, natural disasters or even monsters…No one could predict when they come, but one thing certain is that Honkai manifestation will kill a lot of people unless we do something about it" Mei said with solemn tone.

Mei stopped leaning on the wall, she walked towards Ryan and stared at him right on his crimson eyes. Mei always found his eyes comforting even when people would comment that his eyes was intimidating, she still had no idea why but she didn't mind to went along with that fact. Ryan curiously followed Mei as she moved in front of him, this was the first time Mei talked to him about something serious. Considering what would they do tomorrow, Ryan thought that it's natural to felt apprehensive.

"I valued my friends, Ryan-kun…The last thing I want to happen is for them to succumb toward Honkai's will…Did you know that we girls have to implant ourselves with stigmata on our backs? Solely to control Honkai energy? It constantly test us whenever we went to fight, if you can't handle the stigmata then there's a great chance your body could disintegrate…Or you could turn into a dangerous zombie" Mei said while frowning.

"…Those undead girls wielding weapons, could they be-"

"Many of them were those that died in battle and reanimated by the stigmata on their backs, the stored Honkai energy could control a corpse" Mei confirmed Ryan's theory.

"…Some fucked up world we lived in" Ryan scoffed.

"That's why, can I count on you to help us?" Mei asked Ryan.

Mei gazed at Ryan with hopeful look and honestly speaking, Ryan didn't really liked it. He always uncomfortable when someone put an expectation on him, he really didn't like to disappoint those that he cared about. Some will says he was not suited to be a leader, he just want to make everyone happy…But he knows better, even though he wished it he knew that there's no way everyone would be happy with decisions and expectations placed on him. He had to steeled his heart and make the decisions when it require him to.

"…I haven't said this to everyone except Namira, but our job is to secure then hold that base, Mei…We have a safe haven waiting for you girls to retreat to in case everything goes wrong, I promise you that we'll be there whenever you girls need help" Ryan said as he stared at Mei's eyes directly.

"Thank you, Ryan-kun" Mei smiled in relief.

"Don't thank me yet, I'm still hoping everything will goes well tomorrow…Anyway, I have to go to work now" Ryan said.

"I'm also going to head toward Celestial Clarity, mind if tag along?" Mei asked while titling her head to the left a little.

"Nah, let's go" Ryan said while smiling.

Both walked toward the restaurant while talking about other things than the mission they're about to do, it helped distracting them from the worries in their hearts. Both entered the restaurant where they parted ways, Mei head to the table where the girls already waiting for her while Ryan went to the locker room to change his outfit. As he went inside, he came face to face with Clair, student council president of Saint Freya Academy seated on the chair while her head rested on a table.

"Umm…something wrong Clair?" Ryan asked her.

"…Do you happen to see four guys seated in the right corner from the door with Gakuran uniform?" Clair asked in monotone voice.

"…Unfortunately no, what's with them?" Ryan asked Clair again.

"The one with black cropped hair has a huge crush on me" Clair said in even tone.

Well Ryan wasn't that surprised, Clair was definitely a looker and she's quite an outgoing girl so it seems she will eventually attracted the attention of boys. Ryan knew her less than a month and his deduction was on point about Clair, must be hard for her since apparently this guys rubbed her the wrong way.

"…Oh…then why are you here?" Ryan asked Clair curiously.

"Take the hint! Why would a girl avoided some boy who had a crush on her?" Clair asked Ryan while pouting.

"Hmmm, you're not interested but he insist?" Ryan answered without much thought.

"Ding ding! God, wish he wasn't a thick headed creep. I'm not against relationships but everyone has their standards and mine wasn't like him! I might think about it if he was polite, but-" Clair said then she sighed.

"Your standards...someone like me perhaps?" Ryan asked cockily while grinning.

"Yeah, you're definitely on my list" Clair bluntly answered while smiling.

Ryan was about to laugh before he chocked on his own saliva while his cheeks reddening in embarrassment and shock, Clair did not minced words at all! She blatantly said that he was her type! Ryan wasn't sure what to do with this information, but perhaps he should play it cool with Clair before jumping the gun.

"Really? I'm glad to know" Ryan wasn't sure on what to say.

"There you are Clair" Somebody on the entrance said.

Faina, the restaurant manager entered the locker room with her eyes closed. She looked exasperated with Clair's condition, that was before she noticed Ryan who only shrugged at her. Ryan definitely didn't knew about this, he was absent for an entire week due to his training so he missed on how Clair had been borderline stalked by the same guy for five days already.

She would have tolerated him being around this restaurant if he at least be polite, but that young man usually brought his friends with him. They're noisy, shamelessly hitting on the waitress, sometimes even harassing other customers. When reprimanded, they would pull off the innocent act which disgust Faina but there's nothing she could do for the moment. There's also one more thing that made Faina unable to act against him.

"I heard the situation, how long has this been going on?" Ryan asked while cocking his eyebrows.

"Give or take, five days" Faina said then sighed.

"Is he still there, Faina?" Clair asked Faina.

"Sadly yes" Faina replied.

"Can't you do something? You're the manager" Ryan asked Faina.

"I would if he's not the son of a district attorney, he thinks he could get away with anything because of that…As much as I hate that guy, this restaurant is my primary source of income, Ryan" Faina answered in apologetic tone.

"I see…Any ideas though? This will be a major inconvenience in the future sooner or later, I guarantee it" Ryan said while holding his chin.

"…Ah I got one! You and Clair could pretend to be dating!" Faina said while smiling.

The brain crash experienced by the two teenagers in front of Faina immediately send them looking at her in shock, though that was before they think tactically on her suggestion. Essentially, Faina's suggestions wasn't bad at all. It could make the said man gives up and potentially preventing Clair from being hit on by other guys who might came into the restaurant in the future, it's like killing two birds with one bullet.

Clair looked at Ryan with a curious expression, she's genuinely curious how Ryan felt about this. He would be roped into a mess that was honestly wasn't his to begin with, this would surely put him on the spotlight too among the customers. Ryan noticed Clair stared at him, he roughly had an idea on what was Clair thinking when he saw that expression on her face.

"…I'm game for a convenient and comfortable working environment" Ryan said to Faina.

"He didn't mind Clair, what about you?" Faina asked Clair.

"…If Ryan doesn't mind then, let's work together, darling" Faina said while winking.

Faina got up from her seat with renewed vigor and smile, she then quickly headed out from the locker room while leaving Ryan and Faina in shocked state. Clair certainly quick in recovering her spirits, maybe Ryan could learn a thing or two from her regarding that mental stress management.

"…What a lethal blow, she adapted quickly" Ryan said then snickering.

"She's natural actor, what do you expect? You might as well change to your uniform and go out there to support her" Faina said while tapping Ryan's back.

Kiana, Mei, Kallen, Bronya, Sakura and Fuuka was seated together on their table while eyeing the four guys who had been causing a ruckus for the last five days. This had gone on long enough that few girls stopped coming to work and the customers rating even dropped from five to four stars on the web, though Faina also had warned the Valkyries that handling this case would require extra care as it could potentially cause the restaurant to be closed. Kiana huffed then she sipped on her vanilla milkshake, they were lucky those guys didn't approach them or things might turn out bad for the two sides.

"Does Clair-san still harassed by those guys, Kiana-chan?" Mei asked Kiana.

"Yes, that creep who has a crush on her is quite persistent!" Kiana said in disgust.

"...I forgot to mention this to Ryan-kun" Mei said with her eyes closed.

"I'm sure he's aware of it now that he's back to work, I wonder on how will they resolve this" Kallen said.

"Guess we're about to find out, look" Fuuka said as she pointed at something.

Clair came out of the locker room, she was followed by Ryan shortly after. She approached the table where it was filled by four tall and packed with muscles male high school students, the entire restaurant immediately focused their attention toward them. The guy that was Clair's main source of problem could be seen smiling, Clair stopped herself before them and she controlled her breath…She's about to commit the biggest lie on her life.

"Have you think about it over? What do you say?" The guy asked Clair.

"…Sorry, I'm not interested…Besides, I already have a boyfriend" Clair said with apologetic tone.

That statement caused a ripple of shock as expected, the entire restaurant gasped in surprise. The Valkyries were both shocked but in the end they understood this tactic, it's one of the oldest trick in the books but it still get the job done each time.

"Come on, you said you was single four days ago" The guy said to Clair.

"He confessed to me three days ago, I had crush on him since forever so I immediately say yes! In fact, he's here" Clair lied so naturally.

Now that statement caused the regulars who had been coming to the store for a long time successfully connected the dots, as if on cue Ryan with his slicked back hair and work uniform approached them. The Valkyries were either grinning, smiling smugly or snickering, this tactic would be quite effective against that stubborn piece of shit.

"Really? Why would you date him?" The guy asked Clair.

"Like I said, I've been crushing on him. He's got a lot of good points!" Clair said while smiling.

"What's going on, Clair?" Ryan asked.

"Oh Ryan, he's the guy that I talked about" Clair casually grabbed his right arm.

"Really? Well sir, I'm afraid you have to restrain yourself from harassing Clair" Ryan said with apologetic expression.

"Heh, you're her boyfriend?" The guy asked with a hint of irritation on his tone.

"Yeah, I am" Ryan answered casually.

"I see…You know, I made a deal with your father, Clair. He wanted me to be the one that courts you, but I guess your taste is on commoners level that you'd reject someone as wealthy as I am" The guy said with insult at the same time.

Now this fact was new to Ryan, Clair was what you called an Ojou-sama? A daughter of a wealthy family? Well, now this turned the case from street level to a high politics hurdles! Ryan subtly glanced at Clair…she never gave off a high class lady aura, she lived her life like a commoner at school and never show off her wealth...

"…He what?! I'm going to give him a piece of my mind when I got back!" Clair said to the guy.

"Its no use, he don't have a choice except to agree to the deal…I tried being nice, but it seems you won't come quietly" The guy said.

"…This just turned into something messier than I expected" Clair said to Ryan.

"What should we do?" Ryan asked Clair.

"I'm ready to live independently, you know? If my family going to do this to me then I might as well walk out from home" Clair said to Ryan.

And this girl was quite gutsy too! She didn't mind leaving all of those behind if her family did this to her? Ryan was impressed...As far as he concerned, Clair was fighting for her freedom at this very moment…might as well gave her a lift.

"Alright then…Hey, what's your name?" Ryan asked the guy.

"Jack Ridgewood, the first son of-"

"A bitch I presumed? I don't care about your family, I just want you to know that Clair doesn't agree with the agreement between you and her father. As far as I'm concerned, the law on Soukai required for the involved parties to directly stated their consent. Clair doesn't do that, she's not by any means involved with the deal" Ryan said with his eyes half closed.

"…You dare insult my family and my knowledge of this city's law?!" Jack asked Ryan menacingly.

"I'm more than ready to do it all over again. Now I asked you to please leave this place, you're bothering the other customers" Ryan said in uninterested tone.

"…Fine, but we're taking her to resolve this immediately. Come with me!" The guy said.

The four of them indeed got up from their seats, Jack approached and reached for Clair. Before his hand could touch her, Ryan caught the guy's hand with his left hand. The whole restaurant watched anxiously, this had become a difficult situation. Some even got their phone out in recording mode, they must have loved this straight out of Galge scene

"No, you're not…Hands off my girl, jerk face" Ryan said to Jack menacingly.

Clair couldn't avoided herself from blushing hard after hearing that statement, so were the other girls after witnessing Ryan's action. Jack wringed his hands free, his friends immediately surrounded Ryan while he gently pushed Clair away from the potential fighting ground.

"You're trying to play hero, tough guy? It seems we would have to give you a lesson" Jack said to Ryan.

Jack launched his fist toward Ryan's face, it connected and it made a loud noise along with something breaking. Ryan's glasses broke into two parts with the lenses cracked, his nose also bled crimson blood. The Valkyries and Clair gasped, why Ryan didn't do anything? That clumsy punch should be a piece of cake for him to handle! Ryan seemed fine however, he was currently smirking at Jack after received that strike.

"That's the best you could do? Come on, I believe you could try harder" Ryan taunted.

Veins popped on Jack's forehead as he launched another strike, this time toward Ryan's gut. The fist never connected with him because Ryan held Jack's fist firmly with his right hand, Ryan wasted no time as he pulled Jack close before shoving him backwards to the floor. Jack's friends immediately went to attack, both of them launch a hook at the same time while the other sent a kick to Ryan's chest area.

"Rough play eh" Ryan commented.

He caught the foot of the kicker, raised it to his head level and the two of them that launched hook attacks landed directly on the feet that Ryan caught. It produced loud cracking sounds, someone screamed and Ryan grabbed one of the attackers before he performed a hard throw which sent the guy flying toward the wall. Ryan quickly went to the other attacker, he deflected the sharp jab to the head with his right hand, grabbed the attacker's left arm then proceed to dislocated the joint on the shoulder easily.

The fallen attacker rose from the ground and dive tackled at Ryan, he managed to stopped from being grappled by kneeling the guy directly in the face with his left knee. Needless to say, blood was involved as the guy stopped dead on his tracks and lied prone on the floor with broken nose. Jack successfully stood up, he grabbed a glass bottle, smashed it against the nearby table and turned it into a makeshift weapon.

"This is getting out of hand!" Sakura commented.

"Ryan will wipe the floor with him!" Kiana said while grinning.

"I know that, what I mean is that this will end with that guy in the hospital!" Sakura said to Kiana.

"Kick his ass Ryan!" Kallen shouted.

"How did this end up in a fight?!" Mei asked out loud.

"Should we step in?" Fuuka asked unsurely.

"Nah, it's not everyday you could get a drama class scene like this!" Kallen said while grinning.

Jack dashed forward and tried to stab Ryan with the bottle but Ryan only stepped aside and tripped him down, Jack immediately got up and launched a straight jab at Ryan's face. It never connected as Ryan grabbed the hand with his left, Jack could only remained in his position as Ryan moved in and launched an unrestrained uppercut with his right hand. Sharp metallic sound alongside something break resonated in the restaurant, Jack fell down to the floor while he held his mouth.

Everyone went quiet when they saw several teeth on the floor, Ryan's uppercut was powerful enough to dislocated Jack's jaw and dislodged several of his teeth at the same time. Ryan scoffed as he grabbed Jack's uniform collar and stared at him in eye level.

"Everyone recorded on what happened here, you went in as the assaulter, you father's position won't do absolute jack shit with all of these evidence…Now, you will never bother any girls like this again and you will never step a foot in here again…If I catch you making trouble after this, I'll mess that now fugly face of yours…You got me?" Ryan said in threatening tone.

Jack could only nodded his head which decorated with tears and blood, Ryan let his grip loose and Jack immediately ran out from the store in humiliation. His friends stared at Ryan, but they also immediately ran when Ryan glared at them. The Valkyries immediately surround Ryan, asking if he's alright in case for Mei and Fuuka, Sakura offered him tissue to wipe the blood from his nose while Kallen, Bronya and Kiana praised his combat performance.

Among them, only Faina who noticed that Clair was looking at Ryan, she was smiling and blushing while at the same time fidgeting with her fingers…Faina could only smile at the scene she was witnessing, was that guy planning on starting a harem or something?

.

"…Ryan, get the fuck up!" Rahn said.

The said young man jumped awaken, he was asleep on the School's Main Armory in preparation to execute today's mission. Rahn was in front of him, he's already on his combat armor and carrying an M90 SMG on his left arm and a TSGM1 shotgun on his back. Ryan checked around the armory and he saw everyone were gearing up for the mission, some that already on their armor were busy with their weapons.

"…What time is it?" Ryan asked Rahn.

"2.30 in the morning, you have exactly an hour left to prepare before we lift off for the mission area" Rahn explained to Ryan.

"I see…everyone present?" Ryan asked Rahn.

"Yeah, eager too" Rahn said while smiling a bit.

"Good" Ryan commented.

Ryan took a quick shower in the shower room, put on his black combat uniform, his armor, equipment attachments, bandolier and a small tactical backpack. He picked up G46 Assault Rifle with a red dot scope, infrared laser attachment and vertical foregrip installed, loaded its ammo to a phase shifter and took all the necessary equipment from the armory.

He took a good look at his owned M1911H, he checked its mechanism, checked the ammo in the magazine before he cocked, spun and sheathed it to his right thigh pistol holster. Ryan then turned his body and found everyone were dressed up, weapon in hand and staring at him. Ryan cocked his eyebrows before Gin approached him, he was smiling a bit as he handed Ryan his black colored combat helmet.

"What did I miss?" Ryan asked everyone in the room.

"I believe its your moral boosting speech, Victoria said that you should be the one to do it…Well, she's too busy in the command room and she only sent us a good luck message through the armory's terminal" Han said to Ryan.

What? But wasn't this the chance where she could send off her students to a real combat? Guess that business she had was a top priority or something…Ryan stared at his men, he did not prepared a single line of speech for this occasion…Oh well, when in doubt, wing it!

"Huh, that's new…Oh well...Men, it's only been a month since we were gathered by Schicksal on this academy. We all have our own reasons, but we are here for one same purpose and that's to be a Viking. We are not just some boys with guns that only could yell profanity about someone's mother over the internet, we are competent young men with professional training and we'll get the job done" Ryan said to his men.

He looked at each of his men, everyone was seriously listening to him. Ryan looked at each of their faces, it shown him that his men were ready to fight…This would be their time to show what they're capable of, even though undercooked but at least they knew what to do.

"We will fight without our armor in order to prove ourselves against some cunt named Howard, this will be our premiere into the dark world of conflict…Look around you, those were the faces of your brothers in arms, the one who will fight besides you from now on" Ryan said to everyone.

Each of them nodded to each other, they might only met for a month but it was clear that they already had some kind of bond with each other. Maybe it wasn't a strong bond yet, but if they survive this mission then it will be their chances to improve it even further.

"Remember this, the enemy is not a holographic simulation. They are living beings who will either you kill or get you killed, if you die then there's no do over. You'll lose your life forever…I have my faith in all of you, let's win in our first dive into real combat!" Ryan declared to his men.

""""""""""""HUZZAH!"""""""""" The Vikings energetically answered.

The Vikings exited the armory and headed into the academy's courtyard where there's seven Charon transports ready to carry them to their area of operation, The Valkyries were already inside their respective transports and their attention was taken by the boys who were walking out from the armory. Face composed and their eyes showing confidence, they were eager to prove themselves and to finally get a taste of a real fight.

Each of them boarded the Charons, after confirming everyone was onboard the squadron immediately lifted off after they received clearance from the mission control center. It was three in the morning, the sky was littered with stars and a crescent moon that illuminates the seven Charons. Kiana stared at the Charons that carried The Vikings, she hoped that everything will go as planned. Her attention was taken when there's a communication going between The Vikings and The Valkyries.

"Comm check, 01" Namira said through radio.

"This is 01, loud and clear Tempest Actual" Ryan responded.

"Great. How's everyone doing?" Namira asked Ryan.

"Confident, we'll get the job done" Ryan simply answered.

"Glad to hear it" Namira responded.

There's an incoming transmission from Saint Freya to The Valkyries and Vikings, both forces immediately paid attention to their radio. Himeko's picture appeared on their glasses HUD, it indicates the one that will be in contact with them and it seems Himeko would be in charge of their forces.

"Task Force Terra, this is Saint Freya Mission Control Center callsign Freya Home Base or FHB. You're fifteen minutes away from reaching the area of operation, the weather is cloudy but it was due to Honkai influence. We can't give you precise Intel from our satellite because of that, we would have to make due with drones" Himeko said on radio.

"…Honkai infestation have become that bad?" Namira asked outloud.

"Yes, it is imperative for the Valkyries to locate the source of the eruption. We could handle it once we know where it is, we're counting on you girls" Himeko said to Namira.

"We're ready" Namira replied to Himeko

"Vikings, you're the vanguards for this operation. Get in there and clear that base, you're required to assist The Valkyries if they need help after you're done" Himeko ordered The Vikings.

"Yes ma'am" Ryan replied shortly.

After that, it was mostly quiet as the only sounds they heard was the helicopter rotors. Everyone was tensed, each got their own thoughts to think about. Ryan managed to get a glimpse at The Valkyries Charon beside his, he saw that the girls wasn't that tensed, they're even joking with one another…It really showed him that the girls were a veteran fighters despite their high school girl appearances. Ryan subtly gripped on his new necklace-

"You're entering the AO now, Alpha one and four will hold position for now. Alpha five to seven, you're cleared for deploying" Himeko said on radio.

"Alpha Five, wilco"

"Alpha Six, wilco"

"Alpha Seven, wilco"

"Good luck boys!" Mei said on the radio.

"You too girls!" Ryan said on the radio.

Four Charons held their current position while three of them carrying The Vikings carry on to their landing zone, the pilots lowered the attitude close to the sea level that it leaves water trails behind them. Ryan checked his equipment for the last time, he can't afford his equipment to malfunction just as he goes to action. Everything checked out, he was ready.

"One minute to landing zone. The base is within our sight!" Alpha Seven pilot said.

"Affirmative. Vikings, lock and load your weapons and be ready for immediate enemy contact once we landed! 09, status on the missile defense?" Ryan asked Michael.

"I could only jammed it for thirty seconds before they noticed that their AA defenses is offline, we would have to deploy within that short time limit!" Michael said to Ryan.

"You heard him pilots, it's make or break!" Ryan said to the pilots.

The three Charons carrying The Vikings successfully approached the base undetected, they broke formation and immediately headed to their landing zones. The base immediately went alert when the occupants saw three Charons managed to avoid their radar and their automated missile defense failed to work, the hatch opened and thirty Vikings disembarked to their first mission.

They immediately dispersed and went in gun blazing toward anyone who weren't registered as friendlies on their HUD, the base defenders was caught unaware and they had to fight The Vikings with whatever weapons they had in hand. Most of them who met with The Vikings didn't had an armor on their body, they didn't expected any trouble.

"Operation Dawnbreaker is a go! Repeat, Operation Dawnbreaker is a go! All callsigns, complete your objectives and report in once you're done!" Ryan said through radio.

"Team Two, copy that!" Gin said through radio.

"Team Three, loud and clear sir!" Han said through radio.

Ryan was the one who had to land in the courtyard alongside several other Vikings, they immediately ran for nearby cover which was several parked vehicles while the base defenders rained bullets and rockets at them. Ryan swiftly went to work with his G46, eliminating soldiers left and right while advancing to the base command center. Finger on the trigger, he didn't hesitated in pulling it once he got his red dot sight on the enemy. Keeping it simple, he shoot twice to the center of the body mass or once directly to the head.

The other Vikings followed closely behind him and on his sides, they only stopped firing to reload their guns or when they had to aim their next target. It was intense one minute of firefight, the enemy was underprepared and it was the advantage The Viking needs. Rahn sprinted directly to the entrance guarded by two soldiers, he shoot one with several burst from his SMG before he get in close to the other one, shoot both of his legs, then kicked the guy down with a flying kick that snapped his neck.

Rahn was a bit late as the entrance to the command center was sealed, the only way through was to breach it. Wordlessly, Ryan nudged his head toward the door and two Vikings who were with them immediately set to worked on arming their breaching charges. James thrown a fragmentation grenade to the opened window on the second floor, the grenade exploded alongside thin red mist spurted out of it.

"Status report!" Ryan asked the other teams.

"Team Three is making a good time, none can stand in our way with our big rusky here!" Han said.

"Don't count on me to kill everyone, do your job 03!" Igor commented.

"Team two here, we've cleared the walls and the armory. We got some casualties commander" Gin reported to Ryan.

"How many?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Two men, 25 and 14. Both is being treated by our field medic, we're advancing to the barracks" Gin replied.

"…Understood, update me later. We're breaching the command center, clear the rest of the base" Ryan ordered the team leaders.

""Yes sir!"" Gin and Han replied.

The Vikings lined up besides the door, the breaching charge was planted firmly on the steel door. Ryan nodded his head and The Viking in front of him pressed the detonator, the explosive did its work, the door opened, James threw a flashbang inside which exploded and Rahn alongside Ryan went in and shoot anything that's human in front of them. Few of the enemy soldiers even ran when they spotted Ryan and Rahn efficiently murdering their comrades, but few of them were desperate enough to kill both of them.

The Vikings had to split off when they had to clear the first floor, Ryan and Rahn went together to secure the stairs leading to the second floor. They were ambushed by two enemy soldiers near the stairwell, both had knifes in their hands. Rahn immediately dodged the stab, he then proceed to snapped the enemy's right arm by bending the elbow to the wrong direction. The enemy screamed in pain before Rahn took the knife and jammed it deep to the enemy's left side stomach, the knife rammed through his liver and Rahn kicked the guy harshly to the floor.

Ryan was having an easier time with his opponent, all he had to do was to dodge the fatal stab to the neck, stole the knife after chocking the guy with his mechanical right hand, jammed the knife on his left hand to the guy's right side of the throat and brutally yanked the knife to his left side of the throat. The poor guy's head was barely hanging to his body due to how deep the wound was, blood was spurting out of it and hit Ryan directly on his face covered by combat googles and balaclava. Ryan sealed the deal by jamming the knife to his skull, effectively ending his opponent life right there and then.

"…That was overkill, boss" Rahn commented.

"Had to make sure he's dead for good. Make sure it's quick so you don't torture them" Ryan said to Rahn.

Ryan unsheathed his M1911H and shot Rahn's dying opponent in the head, it killed him instantly when the high caliber pistol bullet penetrated his skull. Rahn whistled as he watched Ryan sheathed his pistol back to its holster, he wasn't sure if Ryan was merciless or he was kind enough to put someone out of his or her misery...Few of enemy soldiers approached them from the rear and they immediately went gun blazing, Rahn and Ryan immediately dived for cover in the wall.

"Goddamnit, we don't have time for this!" Ryan said while scoffing.

He threw a flashbang towards the enemy, as soon he heard the explosion he immediately stormed their position. Three of them immediately got killed by headshots, Ryan was about to kill the fourth soldier when his gun ran out of ammo. He immediately used his gun's stock and hit the soldier straight in the cranium, he unsheathed his combat knife, jammed it straight in the neck toward the guy in front of him, took out the knife and threw it toward the last guy and the knife embedded on his neck. The fourth soldier died soon due to the massive blood loss, Ryan approached the last soldier, embedded the knife deeper before taking it out and sheathed it back to its sheath.

"Phew...Damn! Remind me not to piss you off in the future" Rahn commented.

"You're alright? You didn't took any action" Ryan asked.

"…Couple of rounds hit me in the back, luckily the plating works but I need to get used to the pain and numbness for a minute" Rahn said while shrugging.

"05 here, first floor cleared sir!" James said on radio.

"Clear the rest of the building, we'll meet on the fourth floor before we breach the operation center" Ryan ordered.

"Copy that sir" James replied.

Ryan offered his hand to Rahn who took it and used it as leverage to stood up from the floor, Rahn controlled his breath to calmed himself down before he reloaded his M90. Ryan himself reloaded his G46, he then looked at the stairs and noted some of The Vikings ascended to the third floor already.

"You're up for some cleaning, 06?" Ryan asked Rahn.

"Yeah…let's get this done so the ladies could do their job!" Rahn said while grinning.

Han and Igor was busy covering their heads between stacks of metal boxes as a machine gun post mercilessly fired at them, few of The Vikings already downed on the floor after getting hit by it's bullets. The machine gunner was covering the other soldiers as they made their way to a parked but functional Albatross dropship, they were trying to evacuate the base.

"We can't let them escape!" Igor said.

"No shit Sherlock! 01, we're on the hangar and an Albatross trying to get away with it's occupants! Advice, over!" Han asked Ryan through radio.

"Ground it! But make sure it's intact!" Ryan ordered through radio.

"You're asking for the impossible but we'll try it anyway! 07, I'm going to board it!" Han said to Igor.

"You're out of your mind!" Igor commented.

"Remember our plan that involved Valkyries lunch box? I was never sane to begin with! Now cover me!" Han said as he sprinted out of cover.

"Tch, blyat!" Igor said in exasperation.

Han moved as swiftly as he could toward the dropship rear hatch while Igor covered him by firing his RG33 LMG at the machine gunner, the resulting firefight resulted with the machine gunner got killed while Igor managed to get away with just a scratch to his helmet. Han reloaded his M16B-PAR, he sprinted toward the opened rear hatch of the Albatross dropship and saw at least twenty people in there. Everyone on this base were categorized as hostile, even the non armed ones. Geneva Convention outlived it's usefulness when Honkai related incident happened and they had to clear this base at all cost without taking prisoners. Han jumped in just as the hatch closed, everyone on the cargo bay immediately stared at him.

"LEEEEROOOOOYYYYYYY JEEEEENNNNNNKIIIIINNNNNSSSSS!" Han shouted with all his might.

Igor could only watched when gunfire erupted within The Albatross dropship cargo bay, it lasted around thirty seconds before the engine of the dropship suddenly turned off and the dropship aborted its flight. The side hatch opened and Han walked out from it, he was stained with blood and he had his rifle rested on his shoulder. Igor could only shook his head as he approached Han, he was definitely impressed that Han managed to fight the cargo bay occupants and still managed to make it out alive.

"…Let me rest for a bit, then I'm going to spew some shit at our commander for this ridiculous order" Han said while panting.

"As far as I'm concerned, he was sure of your ability to pull it off" Igor said to Han.

"Still, I would appreciate it if he didn't ordered me to do that! I'm going to check our wounded men, you report back to him" Han said as he walked away.

"Heh…01, hangar bay is cleared of enemy forces" Igor reported to Ryan.

"Excellent! 02, what about you?" Ryan asked Gin.

Gin and Agus shoot at the same guy who were carrying a Brune Launcher simultaneously, the guy accidentally pressed the trigger as he died and the rocket fired at his feet. The explosion successfully took out an entire defense squad in the barracks area, before both of them could sigh in relief another squad started shooting at them. Two Vikings assisted Gin and Agus running back to cover by providing suppressive fire, Gin dived behind a concrete road block while Agus hide behind a barracks building just as a bullet almost hit his head.

"02 here, the barracks are swarming with enemy contacts!" Gin said through radio.

"What do you expect? It's a barrack complex! Can you handle it?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Well, its six against forty people…This isn't fair, for them!" Gin said while he reloaded his F4000.

Just as he said that, Gin returned fire with his F4000 and managed to kill three men who were entrenched behind a building and a jeep. He ordered one of The Vikings who took out his Brune Launcher and fired at an enemy watch tower in the barracks section, the tower exploded and startled the defenders for a bit. The remaining Vikings immediately charged through the enemy's defensive position, the remaining enemy had no choice but to retreat into the courtyard unless they want to die from The Vikings daring assault.

The last group of enemy around twenty people reached the courtyard, they were a hundred meters away from the gate when Viking team three emerged from the hangar. They wasted no more time and bullets as they immediately hosed down the last group with the entire bullets available in their magazine, they went to check on the group and immediately shot those that were still moving or breathing. Viking team two met with Vikings team three in the courtyard, both Gin and Agus had to winced when they saw how Han looked like.

"Geez, close quarter I take it?" Agus asked Han.

"Against twenty men, this will take a lot of detergent to wash off" Han answered.

"That's why I prefer to keep my distances…We've cleared the entire base, let's report to commander" Agus said.

"Right…01, base is secured" Gin reported to Ryan.

"…That was quick" Ryan commented.

"Yes, yes. We manage to clear it in record time by my standards, how about the command center?" Gin asked Ryan.

"We're entering the fifth floor, thing's about to get messy. Set up defensive perimeter for this base, gather our wounded in the command center first floor" Ryan ordered.

"Roger that sir…You heard the man, our job's not over yet! Get moving, it's dawn already so we're running out of time!" Gin shouted his orders.

Fifth floor of the command center, the entire floor was fortified as the remaining personnel on this base holed up in this said floor. This would be their last stand, they have been caught unaware and the enemy forces managed to almost secure this small base. Few armed men could be seen guarding the only entrance to the fifth floor, the stairs leading to it were covered from every direction.

None of them knew who were the ones that attacked them, they didn't have any insignia, their equipment was mixed from different factions. It is almost impossible to determine their affiliation, their only clue was the two digit numbers imprinted with white paint on their left shoulder pad and that didn't help much.

"Report in!" Someone on enemy's radio suddenly said.

"We don't know who they are sir! The entire base is silent, we're the only one's left!" One soldier near the stairs said.

"Then this is our last stand, you need to buy sometime while we extract all data from our database! Make sure the enemy doesn't reach our operation center!" The leader said.

"Yes sir! We'll do our best!" The previous soldier replied.

The remaining enemy soldier outside the operation center set their defenses, this will be their final front…Two minutes had passed and none of those black cladded troops tried passing through the stairs, none even tried to peek or even throw a grenade at them. The soldiers looked at each other then the leader nudged one of his men, the men nodded his head and proceed to carefully approached the stairs. He faintly heard some people speaks when he reached halfway through the stairwell to the fourth floor, he stopped walking and prepared his M16B-PAR.

"I can't believe you could came up with this kind of idea"

"What? It's not that unexpected"

"…You're full of barbaric tricks sometimes"

"Survival is a bitch…Hit it 05!"

"Yessir...Hey lads on the fifth floor! Mind your feet and go to hell you twats!"

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

Suddenly, the positions where the enemy made their defensive position exploded and the flooring torn open with its pieces ricocheting against the walls with the speed of sound. The combination of the explosions and the pieces of flooring effectively took down the defenses put up by the remaining enemy soldiers, the guy on the stairs immediately ran back to fifth floor and saw everyone had died. He was about to turn his head when he felt a muzzle of a gun at his exposed neck, he whimpered as he dropped his rifle and raised his hand up.

"I love that thermal googles function" One of The Vikings commented.

Rahn scoffed as he led the guy in front of his M90's barrel to the nearby wall, one other Viking then searched the last enemy soldier for any other things on his body. He took out sidearm, knife and grenades away from the enemy soldier and some Vikings who needed them immediately took his items. Ryan approached the man and flipped him so he would face Ryan, the enemy soldier couldn't say anything against these faceless soldiers with their balaclava and combat glasses cladded face.

"What's your name?" Ryan asked the soldier.

"Nick Dawson…sir?" The soldier answered timidly.

"I'm going to ask you only once, are you loyal enough for the cause of the organization you currently serve?" Ryan asked Nick.

"Fuck no! I just want to pay for my bills, I only enrolled here yesterday! Please man, I got a wife and a child due soon! Please don't kill me!" Nick begged his life to Ryan.

Ryan stared at Nick's eyes directly and he recognized it, pure desperation and fear etched on his gaze. Ryan nodded at Michael who took out his terminal pad, used the camera to scanned Nick's face and immediately searched the database. Despite his brutal method of killing, Ryan wasn't a heartless bastard to those who he captured. Apparently this one was going to be a dad soon…Ryan understood what it likes to grew up without knowing a father, he might as well let this one go despite he murdered almost everyone on this base.

"Found a match sir. Nick Dawson, former UN Marines and originated from United States...He's married and has an apartment on San Francisco, all checks out" Michael said to Ryan.

"How did you manage to get those info?!" Nick asked Michael.

"Hey, nothing I couldn't get as long internet exist. What do we do with him, sir? Carrying him would slow us down considerably" Michael asked Ryan.

"Exactly what I'm thinking…Knock him out" Ryan said to Rahn.

"Oh well" Rahn shrugged.

Rahn hit Nick directly on his solar plexus and he immediately fell to the floor unconscious, Rahn checked on his pulse and nodded his head when he confirmed Nick was still alive. James approached Ryan with his eyebrows cocked, as far as he knew Vikings existence was a secret. Leaving Nick alive would be counter productive in making sure The Vikings remain a secret wouldn't it?

"Why leave this one alive, mate?" James asked Ryan.

"Even if he blab about us, with no conclusive evidence it still would be hard to track us down…If he speaks then it will create rumors of our existence, but the ones we could exploit sometimes in the future" Ryan said.

"…Not sure I get it but the decision is yours, commander" James said.

"…Well then, stack up on that operation center door. This is it, double check your target and make sure not to damage the equipment inside" Ryan ordered The Vikings.

The Vikings quickly set up their breaching charges on the operation center entrance, just like how they entered the command center they used the same technique when they breached the operation center. Charges exploded, flashbang thrown and all hell break loose as ten Vikings went in hot with guns spitting hot lead against everyone inside. It took less than fifteen seconds and none of the enemy left standing, the whole base was cleared.

"Got someone who looked like a big brass here, sir" A Viking said.

The Viking dragged someone who was bleeding through his lower torso, he wore a dark green military officer dress. The Viking dragged him to the center of the room, Ryan and James approached the bleeding man who looked at them both in contempt.

"Who…the hell are you people!?" The man said.

"Doesn't matter, all we want is this base…You and your men executed civilians two days ago. Why would you do that?" Ryan asked the man in cold tone.

"Had no choice…Those people will die either way when the base fell…We don't have enough air vehicle to evacuate…them…We freed them from an incoming suffering!" The man said.

"…That wasn't an excuse" Ryan said while shaking his head in disapproval.

Ryan noticed the officer held something on his left hand, he grabbed it and saw a glass disk. It's a storage device in the shape of a disk made of special glass, it possessed wide storage space and it's often used in transferring sensitive data. It was used because how easy it was to destroy the data in case the situation demands it, all you need to do was to shatter the disk. Ryan was wondering on why would this officer didn't destroy this disk immediately, regardless he called Michael and ordered him to dissect the data after he shut down the defense system. He raised himself before he nodded at James then walked away, James aimed his M16B-PAR and fired once straight to the officer's head thus killing him instantly.

Ryan walked out of the command center, climbed the walls and stared at the town downhill. It's still burning and Ryan could clearly saw several Honkai beasts and horde of zombies strolling around the town, he waited a bit when the automated air defense weapons went offline as the sun risen from the horizon. Ryan smiled as he switched channel on his radio, it's time for the girls to get the piece of action.

"01 to Tempest Actual, base is secured. You're cleared to insert" Ryan said on the radio.

"Tempest Actual copy, outstanding work! Ladies, the gentlemen have cleared the way for us! Check in!" Namira said on radio.

"Nimbus, we're ready ma'am!" The platoon leader said on the radio.

"Lux, we're good to go!" The platoon leader said on the radio.

"Nox, greenlight status!" Mei said on the radio.

"Excellent! We're arriving in one minute! See you there!" Namira said to Ryan.

"Roger that, good luck ladies!" Ryan said on radio.

Gin and Han approached Ryan from behind and stood on his sides, the three of them stared at the town when they heard helicopter sounds approaching the base. The remaining Charons flew on top of them and headed straight to the town, Ryan caught a glimpse of the first year Valkyries staring at him. Kiana threw a mock salute at him from the passenger seat which he only nodded as a reply, the Valkyries then prepared their respective weaponry as they approaching the landing zone.

"Here you go!" Kallen tossed Kiana a holographic googles.

"Thanks Kallen" Kiana said as she put the glasses on.

"Okay everyone, listen up…Our objective is to provide support for the other three platoons, we didn't have our Valkyrie combat suit yet so we have to make due with our mission clothes! Stick together and let's get this done!" Mei said to the first year Valkyries.

"""""""""""Roger!"""""""""" The girls replied.

"Kiana-chan, Kallen-san, the guns is yours!" Mei said.

"Got it!" "Roger!"

Both Kiana and Kallen immediately manned the side turrets on the Charon, both wasted no more time as they started firing on the zombie horde near the police station with the attached Gatling guns. The other Charons also started firing their guns toward the zombie horde or the Honkai beasts, it will took a while before the landing zone cleared so they were currently circling the zone while clearing any threats on site. A Chariot tried to shoot a laser beam at the Charons which they swiftly evaded, they also retaliates against that Chariot with a focused fire from heavy weaponry which resulted The Chariot tumbled to the ground.

"So far so good. LZ is clear, Valkyries deploying!" Namira said.

"Tempest Actual, missiles incoming! Evade! I say again, evade!" Ryan suddenly said on the radio.

Several missiles were approaching from the south, The Charons immediately deployed their flares countermeasures as they performed evasive maneuvers. Every Valkyrie inside the transports immediately fastened their seatbelts, some of them WILL throw up once this maneuver was over. The missiles did not hit the transports but it exploded in close proximity, the explosion was blue in coloring and all of a sudden all of The Charons in the area experienced engine failure.

The pilots fought hard to prevent the transports from colliding with each other with any available amount of control left on their flight stick, they did successfully avoided from crashing one another but a hard landing was inevitable and the girls had to took a hard impact that injured some of them…Mei and Fuuka were among the first to regained their consciousness, they immediately get to work by dragging their comrades away from the crashed transports.

"What was that?!" One nearby Valkyries asked out loud.

"Probably EMP missiles, I thought the guys already secured that base!?" The other Valkyrie responded.

"Doesn't looked like it came from the base though…" The other Valkyrie said.

"Hah…01, this is Nox Actual, do you read me?"

Mei cocked her eyebrows as she tried few more times in contacting Ryan but alas her radio was malfunctioned, she shook her head as she tried her best to get her comrades away from the crash site first. Mei grabbed Kiana who was moaning as she held her head, she noticed Mei picked her up and helped her walk to the police station.

"Mei-senpai? What's…What's going on?" Kiana asked Mei.

"We still don't know, Kiana-chan. Can you walk by yourself?" Mei asked Kiana.

"I don't think so yet…Just set me down until I feel better" Kiana said then she winced in pain.

"Alright" Mei said.

Sakura and Kallen supported each other as they walked toward the police station with Fuuka carrying the unconscious Bronya on her shoulder behind them, all around them every Valkyries helped their comrades by dragging them to the station, helping them walk or even keeping watch because that simultaneous crashes will surely attracted the zombie hordes attention. After making sure everyone including the pilots were cleared from the crash site, Namira gathered the platoon leaders on the school rooftop.

"We were struck down before we even begin our mission…I can't contact Ryan or even our school. That EMP surely messed with our communication system" Namira said to them.

"Wait…Our equipment should be quite resistant against an EMP pulse. The default state is long range mode connected to Schicksal's network, but the emergency mode in case the network is unavailable should work…Let's try the short range radio mode, anyone remembers the Vikings radio frequency?" Mei asked the group.

"Great idea Mei! We should also search this building for any working long range radio, I'm sure our tech specialist will be able to get it working to send our SOS" Namira said.

.

Ryan, Gin and Han could only watched helplessly as the missiles struck the transports and the aircrafts had to crashed to the ground, the three Vikings immediately used the binocular function on their combat googles to zoomed in at the crash site. They saw that the girls immediately worked their way in setting up defensive perimeter and taking the wounded or the unconscious to the station, Ryan saw Mei trying to talk to someone on the radio but there's no transmission coming to their operation channel.

"Tempest Actual? Fuuka? Kallen? Sakura? Goddammit…Mei? Kiana? Bronya? Please respond! Does any of The Valkyries copy!? Hah its no use…We can't do anything to stop those missiles" Ryan said.

"I take it those were EMP missiles?" Gin asked out loud.

"Yeah, the timing was also too perfect. Just as we shut the anti air defenses system down, the missile immediately came in…Where was it from?" Han asked out loud.

"Was it Anti-Entropy? Was their goal is to eliminate The Valkyries?" Gin asked Ryan.

It was so likely that the perpetrator for that EMP strike was Anti-Entropy, Ryan did received a warning from Victoria before. There's something strange though, they could just wiped them all out before they even reached the island, there's plenty of chances with how they travel without any fighter craft escort this morning. Why did this when they have landed? Was their aim to see what The Vikings could do? Does that mean their unit secrecy was compromised? Ryan doesn't have prove and he had no time to spare, he need to save those Valkyries.

"Hold it, we're going into the conclusion a bit too fast" Ryan said his argument.

"What else could explain this, Ryan? The fact this was all happening at the same time is no mere coincidence! Somebody just sabotage our operation!" Gin said to Ryan.

"I know, but we still don't have any evidence that the Anti-Entropy did this…We can't just blindly accuse them even if they're hostile to us. FHB, this is 01, do you copy, over?" Ryan contacted the academy.

But all he got back was silence, there were no indication of incoming transmission to his radio at all. What the hell was going on in here? This wasn't how Ryan thought the unit's first mission goes…Ryan had no choice but to try again until he got through, the situation went bad more quickly than he thought.

"FHB, this is 01. We are in need of evacuation, the operation has failed! Do you copy, over!?" Ryan tried once more.

"Sir, 09 here. No transmission received or sent on our network…Somebody jammed our comms!" Michael said through radio.

"The fuck?" Han commented.

"Can you trace the source of the jamming, 09?" Ryan asked Michael.

"Not with the equipment this small base has, commander. We would at least need specialized equipment for electronic warfare or an AWACS flying within range, which both we don't have right now" Michael responded.

So, no actual counter maneuver against this jamming. Disconnected from Schicksal, every choice he made here will be purely his own orders and he had to make sure everyone made it. There's also the fact that there's around a hundred life that he need to save…this had turned into a difficult situation.

"Things just get better and better" Gin said to Han.

"But wait, I've detected localized short range radio transmission! It might be the girls!" Michael informed Ryan.

"Patch me through!" Ryan ordered.

"Will do" Michael said.

Ryan anxiously waited for the radio connection, he heard a beeping tone of incoming transmission and he immediately listen in to. Thankfully the short range radio worked or this would be a lot harder than it already was, he noticed that the signal was garbled for a bit before Michael cleared the signal from local interference.

"We got a connection! 01? This is Nox Actual. Can you hear me? Please say something if you could!" It was Mei's voice.

"01 here, thank god that short range radio works!" Ryan said through radio.

"Ah, I'm glad! 01, we're in a bad situation. Our crash landing and constant fights with Honkai will surely attract every Honkai beast on the town, we would evacuate to your position but with how many of us wounded it won't be possible to fight and move at the same time effectively" Mei informed Ryan.

"I see…Nox Actual, stay on your radio while I'll think of something" Ryan said to Mei.

"Alright, I'll help around here while you do" Mei said with relieved tone on her voice.

"One more thing, our long range communication are jammed and there could be a third party involved that could listen in on our plans…Don't talk about sensitive information on the radio, that's all, 01 out" Ryan warned Mei.

So now he had to plan a way out from this god forsaken island, apparently The Valkyries and The Vikings had their own casualties…Those who were injured were their first priority, there's only so much a first aid could do. The trip back to Soukai will at least took two and half hour using Charon Transports, the other three Charons who dropped The Viking off was unable to be contacted because of the jamming.

They might come to investigate if ordered by Himeko, but there's no clear measure in knowing that at this time…They had to rely on whatever was available on this island. If Ryan remembered correctly, there's an Albatross Dropship on the hangar of this base. That alone could actually accommodate a hundred people but it would be cramped as fuck…Ryan supposed they can't be picky right about now.

"Well all we have to do left is to unfuck ourselves and the girls from this clusterfucks…Got any bright ideas, Ryan?" Han asked Ryan.

"…If I remember correctly, we got an Albatross on the hangar" Ryan said while holding his chin.

"Yeah, alongside several military jeeps equipped with turrets and two Norn Hover Tanks. Yup, this small base is definitely well equipped in case of…Oh…I see where you're going with this…Is that the only way!?" Han asked Ryan, he knew where was this going.

"We got damsels to rescue from monsters, I won't use half assed method!" Ryan said to Han.

The only thing that could make them survive against Honkai forces would be the armor support this base could provide them with, so they had multiple jeeps and two tanks…They were well suited to maneuver quickly so this means they could execute guerilla attacks against the large beast, they also possessed enough firepower to deal with a horde of zombies too…Without the injured and those that treated them, there would be around seventeen Vikings ready for combat. This would be a tough one.

"So what? We are their Knights in white shining armor with white horses in modern era!?" Han said with cocked eyebrows.

"Well, we wore black armor and the vehicles is grey painted though" Gin said while shrugging.

"Not the fucking point, Gin! And why are you so calm about this? We are going to charge against the army of Honkai with less than twenty people!" Han argued to Ryan, the plan will be a crazy plan.

"Not the craziest thing Ryan planned out, I've been in a literal suicide mission with him and I still don't know how the fuck did I survived it... This would be better since we have armored vehicles" Gin said while tapping Han's left shoulder.

"…When I remembered that you two was on a dead zone far longer than me, it immediately makes sense that the both of you could came up with batshit insane plan like we're about to commence" Han said to Gin with a deadpan stare.

Ryan was done, he already had a plan set in his mind. Not sure if this will work but it better be, he's running out of option fast to save everyone. Ryan looked at Han and Gin who immediately understood his wish to prepare everything, the both of them then descended from the wall while talking on who's going to ride the tank…Ryan looked at the town for the last time before he contacted Mei on the radio, he will explain on what would they need to do.

"Nox Actual, can you hear me?" Ryan asked Mei.

"Copy 01, what is it?" Mei asked Ryan back.

"We got a plan, but it will require some time to prepare. Here's what you need to do…" Ryan said as he walked down from the wall.

* * *

 **Weapons Trivia**

 **F4000 Assault Rifle: Successor of F2000 Assault Rifle, since its deployment the weapon was known for one thing, its amazing rate of fire. Highly customizable, the weapon saw wide use among Schicksal's Headquarter troops and unofficially it was their standard armament. It also could use a special barrel that could imbue the bullet fired with Honkai energy, though due to its experimental status it was not ready for world wide use.**

 **G46 Compact Assault Rifle: Light, compact and reliable, this rifle became one of the most favorite weapon to be used on urban warfare scenario. Created in Europe, this rifle saw limited use on other region due to most people favoring more for the power that M16B-PAR gave. Anti-Entropy units that was spotted during Southern Japan Invasion wield this rifle, the reason for this currently unknown.**

* * *

 **Preview for the next chapter (Against all odds)**

" **If we make it out of here alive, then drinks is on me!"**

" **Kiana, trust me, I'll get the job done…You need to stay here, these girls depends on you"**

" **That Emperor Class will blast us to oblivion, Ryan! Can we move yet?!"**

" **Fuuka, take Bronya and Kallen to the town center to help The Vikings…If they fall then so our way out of this damned island"**

" **Sweet mother of mercy, this will hurt a lot! Sakura, I'm going to need more than first aid when this is over!"**

" **Mei, don't move! Don't you dare move! I'm coming over there!"**

" **Ryan-kun…If I show you what I'm hiding and capable of…I'm not sure you will see me as a human anymore"**

" **Wait, is that? Oh shit! Igor, break left! One shot of that and all of us will die! 01, whatever you're going to do, make it fast!"**

" **I don't care about that, power, no matter what form it takes is simply power…How you use it will determine its affiliation"**

" **Ryan I beg you, don't you do this to me again! You never came back before, I don't want to experience that for the second time!"**


	8. Against all odds

… **Does this one comes a bit faster than usual? Perhaps. Here's another continuation from the previous chapter, perhaps its time to crank the gear up by one level. Enjoy.**

* * *

"Alright…Is this everyone?" Ryan asked the others.

There were around thirteen Vikings who were all gathered inside the military base vehicle bay, all of them were the ones that didn't have to pull perimeter defense of the base, analyzing sensitive data, wounded or treating the wounded. These thirteen Vikings would be the only reinforcement that The Valkyries will get, they have to succeed or the girls that were surrounded on that police station would likely surrounded completely by Honkai forces.

"Yes, all of us are here" Gin said to Ryan.

"Now then, the plan we're about to commence is almost suicidal in nature so if any of you felt like backing out, now would be the right time" Ryan said to the other Vikings.

Dealing with Honkai creatures were not The Vikings specialty nor included in their job description, they would only had to fight them when they couldn't avoid them…Ryan realized it from the start, the thirteen Vikings who gathered here had another reason for doing this. They all wanted to save those girls, being a knight in shinning armor. Ryan was about to continue talking when Rahn raised his hand up, every Viking in the location immediately stared at him.

"This isn't our specialty, so tell me we're going to save those girls then immediately return to this base?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Yeah, our job is basically to distract those Honkai creatures from surrounding the police station...fighting for prolonged time would not do us any good, our priority is to escape this island" Ryan said to Rahn.

"Then I'm in, dibs on the tanks?" Rahn asked the others while smirking.

"Have it your way Rahn, but for now listen up…We only got one shot, there's no room for error for this distraction to work and the window of opportunity would be tight…But if we pull this off, then our only concern left is to load everyone into that Albatross dropship" Ryan said to The Vikings.

The Vikings nodded their heads, if there's someone who could came up with a plan no matter how absurd or deadly it is then it would be Ryan or his lieutenants. Ryan turned on a holographic projector inside the vehicle bay that displayed the police station and it's surrounding environment, every Valkyries position was marked on the map as well.

"The girls is capable fighting Honkai beast directly and effectively but not us, so our job is to make their job easier. We got four combat jeeps, two material trucks and two hover tanks. We're going to use those material trucks to evacuate the injured girls and the surviving pilots, the perimeter guards would be picked by the jeeps…Here's the route" Ryan explained the plan.

Ryan drew a route for the each vehicles and their positioning, The Vikings who were there as audience immediately took notes and studied the map…all of them then immediately understood on what was Ryan trying to pull off with the positioning of the vehicles and the route they had to take, it would indeed leaves no room for error and the window of opportunity to get the girls out would be limited.

"Okay…Anyone felt like deleting their browser history before we left? No? Good, all of us want to return alive" Rahn said while grinning.

"If we make it out of here alive, then drinks is on me! Hey commander, I would need a recommendation for a good place after this" Han said to Ryan.

"I'll introduce you guys to a nice bar couple of blocks from school, we might as well throw celebration party if we make it alive…For now though, you all got ten minutes to memorize the battle plan, load all the necessary equipment to your vehicles and make preliminary check ups. Move it!" Ryan ordered his men.

They approached their respective vehicles. Puma All Terrain Jeep, the most widely used multipurpose vehicle on the globe for its performance in any combat situations. This vehicle resembled the old version of Humvee but with its collapsible roof and four wheel drive function, even though it was lightly armored its agility was more than enough to compensate for that weakness. The standard armament for this jeep was 7.62mm belt loaded Gatling gun but it could also be modified so it could use another weaponry provided they have compatible attachment.

Norn Hover Tanks was the latest unit in production for anti gravity hover technology craft, it was designed closely resembled to standard Main Battle Tanks but with it's hull parts being edgier alongside it had four 'anti gravity limbs' that function as its method of movement instead of treads. Equipped with 140mm cannon capable loading Armor Piercing, High Explosives or Honkai Eliminator rounds, it's also equipped with a Chain gun besides its main cannon. The vehicle was designed to be operated by single person hence the reason why it was smaller than average MBT's, its main cannon also equipped with belt loading mechanism which eliminates the need for manual reloading.

.

The police station was located on grassy plains on the outskirt of the small town, currently it was busy and noisy due to The Valkyries had to protect their established perimeter around the station. They can't keep this up forever, they clung on the promise of reinforcement and evacuation from The Vikings but even then they need some time to prepare themselves. The Valkyries had to hold their position at all cost, it would be the end for them if Honkai beast manage to wreck havoc inside the police station.

Kallen in her Sundenjaeger outfit was leaning on a tree trunks with down casted expression on her face, Sakura who was beside Kallen wore her Miko outfit sat on the ground while she held her katana on her hands. Both of them were tasked to hold the eastern flank outside the police station by Mei, it's only been half an hour but with how regular the attack was The Valkyries started to tire out from constant battles. Kallen was about to sat down when she spotted two Honkai Knights materialized some distance away from them, they also started to ran and headed toward them directly.

"Squad 12, we got two knights charging towards us from the east! Moving to intercept!" Kallen reported on radio.

Sakura and Kallen came out of their cover and charged against two Honkai knight who already had their lance raised to stab the girls, Kallen nodded her head at Sakura who then moved to the left while Kallen kept charging straight toward the two beast. The beast simultaneously thrust their lances at Kallen who jumped off high in the air, she dropped down and kicked one of the knight away from its horse. Sakura followed up by approaching from the left, she stabbed the horse directly in the abdomen and directly pierced its Honkai core that resulted with the Honkai beast immediately disintegrated.

The other knight was turning around when suddenly it was struck from the left side, it fell down to the ground which Kallen immediately took advantage of by firing her revolver straight into it's core. The creature disintegrated, Kallen and Sakura looked at the one who helped them. She was Fuuka, she wore her school uniform and her combat gloves was glowing orange before it dimmed a bit.

"How's it going here girls?" Fuuka asked them both.

"We've been at it for half an hour, I've lost count on how many rounds I've fired this morning" Kallen commented.

"The attacks may not be that frequent but it's always either knights or zombies…But that just changed" Sakura said as she pointed at something behind Fuuka.

An Emperor class Honkai beast had appeared before them and slowly levitating toward their position, it noticed them as it started to swirled the floating Honkai carapace pieces around it. Now, the girls weren't Vikings because they did fought several of these beast during their junior high school days but that didn't made them any easier to fight. Kallen gripped her Anaconda revolvers tightly, Fuuka tighten her gloves while Sakura set her stance. Then as if someone gave them orders, the three charged at the beast simultaneously.

BOOM!

A blue energy ball hit the Emperor directly, the three girls immediately knew who did that. Some distance away Bronya was sitting on Project Bunny's right shoulder as she operated the targeting mechanism manually, she charged another energy ball which made the cannon on Project Bunny's left arm to glowed blue before she fired it toward the beast again. The energy ball struck but the beast still moved without any signs of stopping, Bronya immediately summoned a holographic screen in front of her which was the cannon's camera alongside detailed calculations around the screen.

"Kiana, Bronya need a visual for a Honkai core" Bronya said on the radio.

"Yeah, yeah…Can't believe I'm stuck on overwatch post" Kiana said while grumbling.

"Mei's orders, Kiana don't have a choice…Bearing 93, reference the Emperor beast that Kallen, Fuuka and Sakura fought" Bronya informed the coordinates.

A bit further from their position, on the rooftop of the police station. Kiana dropped into prone position with a deployed ABS Rifle with its bipod deployed for stability, she looked at the specialized scope then turned it from normal mode to Honkai energy scanner. Kiana swapped the loaded magazine to a tracker rounds, she inserted it then pulled the weapon's slide backwards, once she confirmed the round in the chamber she released it.

Kiana steadied her breathing, she calmed herself and she did quick math in her head to make sure the bullet reached that beast. Kiana spotted the beast's core, she aligned the scope's reticle to an appropriate place before she smiled a bit then squeezed the trigger. The rifle erupted and the bullet was launched from it, the bullet impacted the beast and briefly startled it. Bronya did a quick scan once again and found the marker emitted by the bullet, she set her mech's weapon and the cannon extended it's barrel.

"Target confirmed, overcharging cannon…Sakura, Kallen, Fuuka, stay clear from the beast" Bronya said to them.

The Three Valkyries heard her and they immediately back stepped themselves from the beast. The beast about to pursue when Bronya get a lock on it, Project Bunny's left arm glow bright blue and the barrel was producing several blue sparks of electricity. Project Bunny then fired the Magnetic Accelerated Projectile Energy toward the beast, the core was destroyed and the beast disintegrated.

"I'm still amazed that the cannon is capable to one shot an Emperor" Kallen said to Bronya.

"Despite its power, it requires huge amount of energy and complicated loading process. The weapon fire will also render Project Bunny's cannon useless for a while due to overheat, it can't be used often" Bronya explained to Kallen.

Several more beasts then manifested not far from the police station, they were advancing on them from all sides and The Valkyries had to survive the onslaught. Mei looked at the beast in her sight, the eastern one had a Chariot beast with the southern part being the same. They were lucky there's no zombie steamrolling scenario or this defensive situation would turn into a massacre real fast, Mei contacted The Vikings as The Valkyries started engaging the Honkai forces.

"Nox Actual here, what's your status 01?" Mei askes Ryan.

"01 here, we're pretty close considering the range…right on boys, let's show these beasts why we're the master of this fucking planet!" Ryan said to his men on the radio.

Mei faintly heard the sound of engine coming from somewhere to the south, that's when she saw it. Four jeeps with collapsed roof in an arrow formation, flanked by two Norn hover tanks and two large material trucks being inside the formation and all of them going at high speed to the police station. The Valkyries breathed out in relief with the arrival of reinforcement and evacuation, The Vikings were spread thin because of this rescue attempt so they better pack fast to ease the burdens.

"Hang tight ladies, the cavalry has arrived!" Rahn said on the radio.

"Took you long enough boys!" A Valkyrie said on the radio.

"Well we couldn't exactly went in blind girls, our boss had to devised a plan of action first!" Rahn replied on the radio.

"01 to all Valkyries, get the wounded ready outside of the building! Anyone who isn't perimeter defenders would evacuate with the trucks, the jeeps will pick up the defenders after the trucks made it out!" Ryan said on the radio.

"This is Tempest Actual, roger that 01! You heard the man, ladies! Move your beautiful asses! Go go go!" Namira shouted to the girls.

Han set the jeeps PA system on and he connected it to his terminal, they will need to get as loud as they can to attract them so why not set some music on it in the process? Han selected his music selection, Dave Rodgers as in Eurobeat, Déjà vu…Ryan and Agus stared at Han who had this shit eating grin plastered on his face, he really couldn't pass the chance for doing something absurd like this. Regardless, they got a job to do so they might as well go along with it.

The music started and immediately the two tanks fired their main 140mm cannon, the rounds impacted two Chariot beasts and their attention was taken by The Vikings. Ryan and the other drivers immediately broke formation, each of them strictly follow their routes and objectives while the truck drivers had to accelerate as fast as they could toward the police station. Ryan, Han and Agus drove straight into one Chariot beast that The First Year Top Guns supposed to fought.

"Hey commander, I have a request! When the beat drops-" Han said.

"Say no more, I got what you mean…Agus, get that Honkai eliminator warhead ready!" Ryan said while concentrating on driving.

They're getting closer to the Chariot and the beast's eyes started to glow, if Ryan didn't act soon then it will truly becomes a déjà vu for him and he wouldn't want to lose his left arm this time! Ryan turned the jeep to the right and successfully avoided the laser beam strafe, at the same time as the beat drops on the song he also pulled the last ditch drift with the jeep.

Not the first time he did this and that explained why Ryan able to do it in last second and still kept a steady angle, all because Han was currently shooting the jeep's on board Gatling gun at The Chariot while laughing so happily as if one of his dreams came true. Ryan could only sighed, shook his head while smiling then focused as to prevent the jeep from stumbling upon a rock and ended this drifting in an embarrassing and premature way. The Chariot had troubles in following the jeeps movement while being harassed by machine gun fire, Bronya got a lock on the beast and she fired another shot of the magnetic accelerated projectile energy at the beast.

It successfully tore a hole at the beast but she missed the core just a bit, but because of that the Honkai's core was totally exposed and Agus immediately took advantage of this fact to aim his Brune Launcher. Ryan saw that the beast raised its arm to slam them flat into the ground and ended his drift, Han and Agus was shocked as they struggled to prevent themselves from falling out of the vehicle. The hand hit the ground and the vehicle shook when the shockwave reached it, Han quickly recovered and kept the cannon hot by immediately firing at the beast again.

"That was close! I'm going to make a straight pass at it, should be a piece of cake for you!" Ryan said to Agus.

"Yeah, hit it commander!" Agus said as he prepared the launcher.

"Hang on!" Ryan warned his passengers.

Ryan pulled the handbrake, turned the vehicles 180 degree back toward the beast, disengaged the brake and quickly accelerated toward it. The beast was slouching forward in preparation for sonic wave attack and there's no way for them to avoid this, they had to strike first. It wasn't long until Agus confirmed his aim and squeezed the launcher's trigger and the missile flew off, it kept flying and it hit the exposed Honkai core. The beast roared, slouched to the ground before it disintegrated to nothingness.

"Yes!" Agus pumped his fist.

"Nice shot man!" Ryan complimented him.

"So even you are proficient with a rocket launcher!" Han commented while still firing the turret.

"I never said I could only use sniper rifle for sniping!" Agus said while grinning.

An Emperor suddenly manifested not far from the first year top guns position, it immediately fired its laser beam at Ryan's jeep and narrowly missed it that it left a scorching mark on the rear left side of the vehicle. Ryan eyes widened and he stay clear of the beast while Han rained it with bullets, fighting an Emperor directly when you're a normal human without Sleipnir Armor would be a death wish.

"How many Emperor beast that have spawned in this single battle alone!?" Kallen asked out loud.

"Three? Four? It hasn't reached five yet, but yeah this looks bad!" Kiana said to Kallen.

The Emperor beast threw one of its swirling Honkai carapace piece to the police station, the impact threw Kiana away from the rooftops and into the ground. Kiana flipped herself midair and landed smoothly on the ground, she was then followed by Mei as they went to take down The Emperor beast. Both of them charged at the beast while it was distracted by Kallen, Fuuka, Sakura and The Vikings.

"Keep em steady!" Han shouted.

"If I do, we'll be grilled by that laser beam!" Ryan shouted at Han.

The Emperor planted itself to the ground and four pillars or laser shot out from the ground, it expanded and almost hitting everyone. Mei was a bit late though and she was thrown off then hit a huge boulder, she coughed a bit as she tried to get up but her back ached so much it forced her to sit down for few seconds.

"Mei, don't move! Don't you dare move! I'm coming over there!" Ryan said on the radio.

The jeep was making it's way toward Mei while the beast behind them prepared its Honkai carapace pieces, it was thrown at The Vikings but Ryan decided they will shield Mei with their jeep. If that piece hit the rear or the backseat passenger side, there's a chance they'll survive without having their vehicle's blown off. The jeep covered the recovering Mei, Ryan and Agus braced themselves while Han pulled last ditch effort to destroy the piece by the jeep's gun.

"Sweet mother of mercy, this will hurt a lot! Sakura, I'm going to need more than first aid when this is over!" Kiana said.

"What!?" Sakura said.

"No! Don't do it, Kiana!" Ryan said.

Kiana stood in front of the jeep and deflected the carapace piece from impacting the jeep with her ABS Rifle, but it only flew off from the supposed angel so it hit her head in the process and thrown her to the jeep then fell to the ground in a hard thud. The Valkyries gasped and The Vikings grimaced when the rifle was split into two fell to the ground, it was that powerful! The beast was about to fire it's laser when a rocket impacted it, the beast then fired at the direction the rocket came from.

"Wait, is that? Oh shit! Igor, break left! One shot of that and all of us will die! 01, whatever you're going to do, make it fast!" James said on the radio.

Ryan stared at Kiana's unmoving body and he gritted his teeth, that girl was reckless! He looked at The Emperor preparing its laser strike and this time it was directly aimed at them, Han fired at the beast but the torrent of 7.62mm bullet rain didn't even made the beast flinched.

"That Emperor Class will blast us to oblivion Ryan! Can we move yet?!" Han asked to Ryan.

"We won't. Fuuka! Help us expose the beast's core!" Ryan said.

"Understood! Sakura, follow me!" Fuuka said.

She alongside Sakura charged in while Kallen covered them with her gun, Sakura misdirected the attention of the beast while Fuuka went in for the kill. Her right fist glowed orange and she shouted as she punched the beast with all she got, the impact resulted in explosion of orange energy that blew a hole on the beast and destroyed the Honkai core in the process. The Valkyries retreated and they went to retrieve Kiana who was unmoving since she took the hit.

"That…works too. What took her so long to do that?!" Han commented.

"Judging from the preparation time, it was an instant kill move that couldn't be used often!" Agus said.

Ryan's face hardened even when the beast died, Ryan and Agus disembarked from the jeep and approached Fuuka who was carrying Kiana on her shoulders. Ryan checked on Kiana's condition, she's unconscious and she had a deep gash on her left stocking covered leg alongside her left face was covered in her own blood. Horde of zombies suddenly appeared to their left and Ryan alongside Agus immediately opened fire at them.

"Go get her to the jeep, Fuuka!" Ryan shouted at Fuuka.

"Alright, cover us!" Fuuka said.

They started moving toward the jeep, Kallen furiously fire and reload her handguns at amazing pace to stave off the zombies from reaching their position. Mei, who had recovered and Sakura kept their flanks secured by slashing any of them that Ryan, Kallen or Agus failed to take care of. They were twenty meters away from the jeep when the jeep was slammed by something from above, bending the vehicle's hull and throwing Han away from the jeep's turret. Han landed harshly on the ground and rolled a bit before he stopped and laid on his back.

Ryan immediately ran toward Han while getting a glance of what was the thing that crushed the jeep, it was Honkai Flyer class, airborne Honkai creature that had sharp wings and could also fired off energy projectiles. Roughly five meters in height and length, these creatures were fully capable of destroying armored vehicles and fighter jets with ease. Ryan arrived at Han's position, he was having trouble with breathing so Ryan lifted him up a bit to check his condition.

"Hey! Han! Can you hear me!?" Ryan asked Han.

"…Urgh…Damnit, felt like my chest was…rammed by something!" Han said to Ryan while coughing.

"Yeah well that's what you get when you landed hard with your body, come on, on your feet soldier!" Ryan said while he grabbed Han's shoulder.

Getting underneath Han's left arm, Ryan proceed to shouldered Han and helped him walked away from the destroyed jeep. The creature flew off and the jeep exploded, the explosion shockwave sent Ryan and Han back to the ground. Ryan immediately recovered and took Han's left arm once again and proceed to walked back to their makeshift cover where The Valkyries already waiting for him, Ryan set Han's down and Han started coughing while holding his armored chest.

"We're trapped!" Mei stated to everyone.

"What do we do now!?" Agus asked Ryan.

"Bail out of here for sure! 02, you still on the field?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Yes and I only emptied a quarter of my ammo reserves, I'm still good to go!" Gin replied.

"I need you to pick us up, we'll ride on the hull because our jeep's busted…Reference is red smoke on eastern side of the police station!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Will do sir, hang tight!" Gin said before he continued firing his main gun.

Agus tossed Ryan a red colored smoke grenade, Ryan pulled the pin and dropped the smoke five meter from their position. Gin spotted their position and immediately set his tank to glided over to the location, Gin also spotted the trucks carrying The Valkyries and the pilots exiting the police station while being covered by the remaining jeep's which also filled by The Valkyries who's holding the perimeter.

"Commander, the trucks are leaving the station. They're jam-packed" Gin reported.

"Good, everyone's on board. Then we're the last one" Ryan said on the radio.

"Shit! Three knights is making their way to you, 01!" Gin said on the radio.

Agus spotted the three knights and wasted no more time firing his CAPM21 DMR toward them, Ryan and Kallen helped by firing their own weapons at the beast but it didn't gave much effect. Mei and Sakura charged toward the beasts with their katanas drawn out, both evaded the lance thrusts with surprising ease. Mei slashed open one knight then stabbed the exposed Honkai core while Sakura performed full power slash that immediately cut the beast into two and destroyed the core simultaneously.

The last knight was about to make its charge when a rocket hit the rider straight in the face, Sakura and Mei took the opportunity and both stabbed the core's location at once. The beast disappeared and both of them sighed in relief, Agus himself was smiling tiredly with Brune Launcher rested on his shoulder, brief check out on the surrounding revealed there's no more Honkai creature in immediate vicinity. Mei and Sakura returned to the others position, Sakura then inspected Kiana's head wound.

"…She's going to need to wear bandages for a while after this" Sakura said out loud.

"That bad huh?" Fuuka asked Sakura.

"Yeah, this will potentially give her severe migraine for few days. Ryan, hold her steady please" Sakura requested.

"...Sure" Ryan said while holstering his G46.

Ryan gently held Kiana's head then lifted her a bit to a seated position height so Sakura could treat her wounds, Sakura produced a small bag of first aid kit. She took out a disinfectant spray and sterilized the wound, put a gauze with alcohol sprayed on it to Kiana's head before she wrapped the bandages around it.

Sakura then worked on the gash on Kiana's left leg, standard procedure like she did with the head wound except she used more bandage this time. Sakura then used the remaining unneeded bandage to wiped the blood staining Kiana's left face and leg, just in case Kiana woke up early Sakura took out a medical syringe and injected the painkillers through Kiana's neck.

"She should be good for a while, I'll see if I could find suture equipment to stich her left leg wound on that base later" Sakura said out loud.

"Thank god we have you here, Sakura" Ryan said while smiling.

"I'm just doing what I can for my friend…That being said Ryan, you have blood smell coming from you…Are you injured?" Sakura asked Ryan.

"Ah no, a bit of situation in close quarter combat…got blood splattered on my balaclava and combat googles" Ryan said to Sakura.

Gin arrived on their location, Fuuka and Bronya climbed onboard the tank followed by Agus, Han and Kallen. Ryan carefully lifted Kiana and Fuuka received her from above the tank, Sakura climbed aboard and just as Ryan was about to do the same he was knocked from his position by a purple explosion.

""""Ryan!"""" "Ryan-kun!" "Commander!"

Ryan looked up and saw a flyer was diving straight towards them while shooting energy bolts at them, Ryan recovered from the ground and started sprinting away from the hover tank. The beast redirected its attention toward Ryan and started pursuing him.

"Go 02! Get away from here! I'll bait it!" Ryan said.

"Shit! Good luck!" Gin said to Ryan.

"06! I'm going to need your help! You're still nearby right?!" Ryan asked Rahn.

"Lucky you I'm still providing cover fire, I see you're in predicament, boss. Run towards me, I'll snipe that beast with my cannon!" Rahn said to Ryan.

Another Chariot class suddenly manifested to Ryan's right and Rahn paled at the sight of it, he was stunned inside the tank's cockpit when he caught the beast started moving towards Ryan. It's either do or let him die moment and Rahn chose do, he aimed the tank's turret and fired at The Chariot beast supposed 'eye'. The round hits it but it didn't do much to damaged the beast but it successfully distracted it, Rahn switched target to the flyer and sniped it with his tank main gun. The 140mm AP round tore the beast right side and was crippled as it fell to the ground hard, Ryan kept sprinting then jumped above Rahn's tank while panting hard…It had been a while since he did this, Ryan considered that he may have to start jogging in the morning after this.

"You good!?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"Get us out of here!" Ryan said to Rahn.

Being the last one on the field, Rahn immediately turned the tank around and made their way back to the base at the tank's top speed. Ryan sat on the hull while controlling his breath and looked at the aftermath of their little rescue mission, he was glad none of them died in the process.

.

Rahn and Ryan were the last one to arrived on the base, the scenery in front of them could be described as busy. Valkyries and Vikings went back and forth between buildings, several of the pilot entered the hangar bay and few Vikings could be seen setting up an electronic device on the courtyard. Ryan was confused with the last one, what were they trying to do with that electronic device that resembles a small dish. Deciding he need answers, Ryan contacted Michael who he presumed still on the command center.

"09, this is 01…What's with the device on the courtyard?" Ryan asked Michael.

"Ah welcome back commander! Regarding the device, 27 found it when he was looking for some supplies on the armory. It's a signal broadcaster, well it only have small range but its worth the shot" Michael explained to Ryan.

"Weren't all signals jammed by whoever the fuck that decided to do that to us on this island?" Ryan asked Michael.

"…I found out that the jamming only hits our specific network, we can actually bypass the jamming by using another source and that is the device you see. The jamming that hit us was not actually a localized signal jammer, it was coding jammer type, meaning it only strike precise part of a frequency and in this case it's Schicksal's network" Michael explained about the jamming.

Ryan was cringing when he heard Michael's explanation because he didn't fully understand on how the hell does that kind of jamming works, but he knew that Michael was the expert when it came to this stuff so he opted to leave it to him to do the technical bullshits. Ryan looked at the device once more, he saw that The Vikings assembling it don't even really know on how to do it as they looked at the instruction manual while scratching their heads.

"…I did worked for web development for a year and I'm honestly confused with all this. To put it bluntly, we could just broadcast our own signal instead relying on Schicksal's network which were jammed on this island?" Ryan asked Michael.

"That summarized it, I guess" Michael said.

"We're going out of this island anyway 09, why put this one up?" Ryan couldn't help but asked why.

"Yeah, the thing is, that dropship on the hangar? Some survivors of this base decided to hijack it, we prevented them from going, firefight ensued and…shit happens. We lost it's two rear engines" Michael explained in awkward tone.

At this news, Ryan facepalmed and sighed. He didn't count for the fact that there could be other groups outside the base when they attacked it, with them being the only place where they possessed a fully working Albatross dropship it would make sense to raid it and then escape from this god forsaken island. What he questioned was how the hell did his men let these few people almost slipped through their guard, where were they?

"Are you kidding me?! Didn't I tell you guys to make sure the base is secure? How the hell did this happened!?" Ryan asked with clear frustration on his tone.

"We did checked every inch of this base, sir…They were on patrol outside, they managed to sneak into the hangar where some of our men happened to spot them" Michael explained the situation.

"Hah…We do are low on man power, we couldn't cover every inch of this base without creating a blind spot…Alright then, how long until the repairs complete?" Ryan said, it really matched his theory.

"I haven't spoke to them yet, you might want to head to the hangar" Michael said to Ryan.

"Got it" Ryan said to Michael.

The hover tank that Rahn drove was about to turned toward the vehicle bay when Ryan jumped off from it, he then walked toward the hangar to ask the repair progress. He glanced at the command center while walking and saw many of the wounded were being treated on the empty storage garage beside the building, he saw that Sakura, Mei and several Vikings were busy tending the injured…Luckily no one died on their side, but the wounded were on borrowed time so they had to get out of this island as soon as they could…Ryan took a mental note to visit the temporary treatment location later.

He was about to enter the hangar when two Valkyries carried a body from inside the hangar passed him, Ryan recognized the body as Nick Dawson…Ryan frowned and shook his head, that guy was beyond saving now. Why would he got involved in that raid attempt? Guess Ryan won't know the answer, he took a bullet straight in the forehead and several on his torso. He grimaced on imagining what would his wife looked like when she heard that her husband got killed...

Ryan finally entered the hangar and Ryan immediately got the proof of what Michael said, the two rear engines of the dropship looked heavily damaged. The pilots were helping several Valkyries technician and Bronya inspecting the engines, Ryan supposed with the materials available on the hangar bay it would be possible to repair it. Bronya noticed Ryan entering the hangar and she levitated down to meet with Ryan from the rear left engine.

"Hey Bronya, how bad was the damage?" Ryan asked Bronya.

"Bronya's scanner revealed the engines were beyond saving, Ryan. Fortunately, there are spare engines that we could use being stored in the rear part of the hangar…Some of The Valkyries are in the middle of carrying it here" Bronya explained to Ryan.

"I see…You could fix this bird, right? Is there anything you else you need?" Ryan asked Bronya.

"Once the engine arrived, Project Bunny would be more than enough to help with the repairs…Bronya estimate it will took two hours tops" Bronya said while she inspected the dropship's schematic.

Well, some good news at least. It would be possible to get out from this island through aerial means, the wounded would need immediate medical attention once they were back on the academy. Ryan unconsciously patted Bronya's head and stroked it for a bit, Bronya was caught off-guard that her eyes widens when Ryan did that. The said man himself the realized what he had done and immediately pulled back his right hand.

"...Ah sorry, my hand kind of moved on their own there..." Ryan awkwardly said.

"It's…fine, Bronya is fine with it" Bronya said while averting her gaze.

"Anyway, I have to go now…Update me once it's done, alright?" Ryan said as he walked away.

"Bronya understood" Bronya nodded her head.

Ryan approached Sakura and Mei who were tending to one of the injured Valkyries, she's coughed blood and Ryan immediately went in to help. The girl was thrashing around in pain as Ryan held her to the floor, Mei quickly took a medical injector, swapped the cartridge from pain killers to sedative and injected it through the girls neck. It took several seconds before she calmed herself down and then closed her eyes as she went unconscious, Sakura proceed to touched the girl's torso to check for any signs of organ damage. Ryan took a good look on The Valkyrie, she wore a suit instead of her uniform.

"She's a second year" Ryan commented.

"Even wearing The Third Generation Valkyrie Combat Suit she still managed to get hurt like this when a Chariot swung it's hand at her" Mei said to Ryan.

"…Look on the bright side, if she's a normal human then she'll be nothing but a bloody pulp on the ground after that" Ryan said to Mei.

"I suppose so…Several Valkyries are already on their way to the infirmary on the base west side to salvage whatever equipment or medicine they can" Mei said while she rummaged through a first aid bag.

"Good…I need to talk to Namira for a bit" Ryan said as he raised himself from the floor.

"…R...Ryan?"

Someone called Ryan and he immediately recognized that voice, he turned around and saw Kiana tried to get up from her makeshift bed. Ryan immediately went to her position and held Kiana's shoulder and urged her to rest by pushing her gently back to the bed, Kiana struggled for a bit before a headache suddenly forced her to comply.

"...I'm here Kiana, you need to rest" Ryan said to her.

"...Where are we?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"On the base that we captured this morning…You are reckless, you know that?" Ryan said to Kiana while frowning.

"…I just don't want you and Mei to get hurt…you're a normal guy after all" Kiana said while smiling.

Ryan winced a bit, yeah that stuff about him being capable to transform into a Honkai creature were being kept secret among the students with Fuuka and Gin being the exception. It was a hassle but the less people knew about it the better, Kiana was no exception to this and he felt bad…But it had to be done, he wouldn't want to worry her…Look what happened to her when she did?

"I appreciate the sentiment but you're still reckless, Kiana…Don't do that kind of stunt again in the future, got it?" Ryan said to her while rubbing her right side of the head.

"Only…if you take better care of yourself…dummy" Kiana said while grinning.

"Heh, guess so…I'll go for now, we're not out of the woods yet. Hey Mei, she's awake!" Ryan called Mei over.

Mei gasped and she quickly head toward Kiana and Ryan, Mei carefully hugged Kiana while whispering 'youkatta' and then 'Kiana no baka!'. Ryan smiled and he left the scene, he approached one Viking who was busy tending another injured Valkyrie. The Viking had a black short hair, with dark grey eyes and caucasian features. He was just done stitching the gaping wounds on The Valkyrie's right arm when he noticed Ryan beside him.

"Commander, how's things?" The Viking asked Ryan.

"That should be my line, Grey. You've been working non stop since this morning" Ryan commented.

Grey was one of the few Vikings that actually possessed vast knowledge in medical world with hours of practice, he's an invaluable member of the unit and he had been working since one of The Vikings took a bullet this morning alone. When The Valkyries arrived, Grey immediately went to help and had been at it until Ryan approached him.

"Huft, well, not many of us were knowledgeable in medical arts…I have to do my part" Grey said to Ryan.

"Yeah, look around you, everyone's treated and those that remain is only lightly injured…You've done well, Grey, take some rest" Ryan said to Grey.

"Is that an order, sir?" Grey asked in cheeky tone.

"Yeah well, I was about to resort to 'punching your gut to force a rest' if you didn't comply" Ryan replied while snickering.

"Hahahaha, alright, guess half an hour break would do me good" Grey said while smiling.

"Here then" Ryan said.

Ryan shoved something at Grey, he looked on the item on his hand and saw a chrome flask. Grey looked at Ryan who only held his right index finger over his mouth, he had no choice but to chuckled, took a swig from the flask and hand it back to Ryan. The Bourbon immediately perked Grey up, that was some good stuff.

"You shouldn't be drinking on the job, sir" Grey said while smiling.

"That's why I want you to keep it a secret, if the girls behind me found out then I could receive some excessive nagging. Hahahaha" Ryan said while chuckling.

"Secret's safe with me sir" Grey said as he sat on one of the spare chairs.

"Nice, see you later" Ryan said as he walked to the command center.

Namira was watching Michael works at calculating something over the map of the island on a glass writing board, she didn't get on what was Michael trying to do here. Benio, The Valkyrie besides him did the same but instead of a map she got complex equation and several other graphs that only served to further confuse Namira. Ryan entered the operation center room and discovered the sight, Namira was the only one who didn't seems to work on anything so Ryan approached her.

"What got you so baffled about?" Ryan asked Namira.

"…Those two over there, I think them being a scientist would suit them more" Namira said to Ryan.

"I'm sure they have their own reason for wanting to fight in the frontline" Ryan said while folding his arms.

"Yeah, you're right…How's our condition?" Namira asked Ryan.

How? Well, they're basically fucked. Too many injured, no support from their base or nearby units and the weather was about to get worse due to the gathered black clouds. But there's still some hope remains because of that signal broadcaster device and a damaged Albatross dropship, glad that the base they captured had those because Ryan could grew bald thinking of a way out if they didn't have those.

"Good news or bad news first?" Ryan asked Namira.

"Good first I guess" Namira said while massaging her left temple.

"Good news is, we managed to rendezvous with each other on this base and significantly improve our combat potential" Ryan said as he walked to the holographic projector.

"And the bad ones?" Namira asked while she watched Ryan.

"We are stranded, the captured Albatross dropship need some repairs first, we still can't contact our commander and now…We're not sure when will the beasts attack our position…Anything else you want to add?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"How about in the good news part, at least electricity and water still running? The cafeteria also has tons of Meals Ready to Eat, won't taste like five star restaurant dish but it's something" Namira said while folding her arms.

That's a start, at least they don't have to worry about provisions and sanitary for a while. But Ryan won't let that get his guard down, he still prioritized them in getting out of this accursed island as soon as they could. Ryan turned to looked at Namira who tiredly smile at him, she's having it rough too.

"…Hallelujah, we could eat and shower" Ryan said with impassive face.

"Precisely..." Namira said.

"Commander, I'm done with the calculations" Michael said to Ryan.

"How's the result?" Ryan asked Michael.

"This will definitely able to work, we only have one problem…Benio, if you would" Michael said to Benio.

Benio kept writing something on the glass board before she closed her marker and turned toward the waiting Namira, Ryan and Michael. The few others in the background were busy with their own tasks, Benio then shown them her calculations which immediately got Ryan and Namira to squinted their eyes because they don't have a single clue regarding what Benio just wrote. Benio was about to facepalmed but she found that to be quite offensive, so she opted to explained the calculation she just did.

"Okay so…The dish would need constant juice, the generator on this base is still a diesel powered generator…That would mean we can't strain it anymore than now, it was close to overload with the anti air defenses installed on this base…Seriously, the engineers must be drunk when they didn't proposed the new power generator" Benio explained to Ryan and Namira.

"I see…Is there another place with enough power on this island?" Ryan asked Benio.

"Based on the database, there's a Honkai powered reactor on The Town Center building's underground…Problem is, that place would probably be jam-packed with zombies. Setting up the dish, connecting it to the generator and fighting zombie horde in the middle of the town like that is something you won't want to do" Benio explained the situation.

And, their backup plan requires them to went in into a dead town with it's occupant being undead and they also have to complete some objectives. Even if Ryan told the people about this mission, they will believe it was a straight rip off from shoot em up games that involved zombies. Getting in there would be quite a pain and he hope they don't have to do this, please let that Albatross be their way out of here.

"Hah…for a backup plan, this is quite the hassle" Ryan said to Benio.

"Aren't backup plan usually being complicated like this?" Benio asked Ryan with cocked eyebrows.

"Yeah well, not always. Something much more simpler is preferable...Who you will sent out? I already have my rooster" Ryan asked Namira.

"Let's see…Fuuka" Namira called.

"Yes leader?" Fuuka asked Namira.

"Fuuka, I need you to-"

BOOM!

The ground shook as an explosion was heard inside the base, everyone immediately knew that something just went horribly wrong. Ryan took a look outside through the window of the fifth floor, he saw a crater was formed on the courtyard where a Flyer beast was levitating a bit above the ground. Ryan widened his eyes in realization, their captured anti air defenses didn't work against them.

"01 to all units! We got a breach in the base! Defend yourselves!" Ryan shouted on the radio.

The beast flew up after several Vikings retaliated with their guns, Ryan immediately went outside of the command center building to discovered that several Flyers was strolling to their position before they were alerted and decided to attack them. Valkyries and Vikings alike immediately ran for nearby cover while the Flyers started harassing them with their energy projectiles, few Valkyries then charged out of their cover with weapons drawn in order to down those Flyers.

Ryan grabbed his G46 and started shooting at one Flyer that was aiming at the temporary treatment location, the beast then turned around and faced Ryan directly…Now he understand that the energy bolt fired from the beast had a similar power as of a hand grenade, getting hit with one without Sleipnir Armor shielding would mean he'll be deep fried and turned into a well done steak. But fuck that, the injured people were in danger!

Grabbing a fragmentation grenade and unsheathing his M1911H, Ryan sprinted toward the beast who fired off its energy bolts at him. Ryan managed to dodge every bolt hurled at him narrowly, shot the beast at the same place which was a crack on the beast's carapace in under three seconds which also emptied his entire magazine, exposed the core and threw a grenade at it. The grenade exploded, the creature fell and disintegrated. Ryan was about to sigh when he saw a purple bolt headed toward him, he dived to the left but the shockwave due to the explosion was powerful enough to sent him flying.

Ryan collided with the nearby wall which was the hangar bay's wall, he got up shakily while coughing and saw that several more beast arrived on their base which also begun attacking indiscriminately. Keep this up and someone will die, Ryan reloaded his G46 while contacting Michael.

"09…Why did the…missile didn't fired at those beast!?" Ryan asked Michael.

"They didn't programmed them to do so! I have to input new codes to manually program them to target Honkai beast!" Michael said to Ryan.

"How long do you need!?" Ryan asked Michael.

"As long as you can give, commander! There are a lot to input and we can't afford a single error!" Michael said to Ryan.

"FUCK!" Ryan cussed.

James approached Ryan and threw him a Brune Launcher which Ryan holstered for now, Ryan glanced to the left and saw Kallen carrying a .50 caliber SA2 machine gun turret on her hands and firing relentlessly at the incoming beast, few of them diverted their path when the bullets hit them and one of them was downed when a crimson colored spear pierced it. The spear hanged a bit before it flew back to the thrower, the said person was Namira who left the operation center to join the battle.

Both nodded at each other, they immediately searched their next target to take down. The beast kept appearing and for a while it seems there's no end to them, if one of it was downed another immediately showed up. Ryan had been firing his G46 almost non stop, Namira was busy trying to aim her throw at the quick flying beasts. Suddenly, The Norn Hover Tanks came out of the hangar bay and they immediately fired their 140mm guns. The tanks were a great help, their cannons were just the right tool to one shot those Flyer beasts.

"We got it covered here sir, you maybe needed somewhere else!" Gin said on the radio.

"Yeah, how about-"

"Incoming! It went straight for the hangar!" James warned everyone on the radio.

Few Flyers were diving straight from the sky to the hangar with a hole on it's roof due to being damaged in battle, every human in the base with a weapon immediately focused their attacks toward the charging beasts. They managed to destroy or divert except one who successfully teared through the roof and rammed the under repair Albatross dropship straight in the middle part of the hull.

"…No!" Namira said with desperation on her voice.

The beast immediately wreak havoc inside the hangar, energy bolts was flying everywhere and the hangar occupants tried their best to threw the beast out. But they were too late because the dropship received too much damage, it exploded and engulfed the hangar in a big explosion and immediately set it on fire. The shockwave sent The Valkyries out of the building while all of the surviving pilots inside the dropship were dead when they were torn, burned or hit something hard because they were thrown by the shockwave. The Valkyries survived because of their stronger body constitution, the pilots were only normal humans.

Namira, Ryan, Kallen and James were on their way to help when the hangar exploded and sent the four of them back, hit the ground and left them a bit dizzy due to being hit by that shockwave. Ryan eyes was widened when he realized on what was going on, Kallen covered her gaping mouth in disbelief, Namira was staring at the burning hangar bay while shaking her head and James gritted his teeth while gripping his M16B-PAR tightly.

"Nononononono, NO! FUCK! THAT'S OUR WAY OUT YOU CUNTS!" James shouted in outrage.

The beast emerged from the hangar, it was covered in scorch marks and James shouldered his Brune Launcher. He aimed it, fired the launcher, the missile hit the beast and it was downed on the ground. The core was exposed but it will took some effort to damage it without explosives.

James threw away his launcher, switched to his M16B-PAR where he emptied the entire magazine while running towards the downed beast's core and screaming on top of his lungs. His rifle went out of ammo, James discarded the gun and used his VAP sidearm and also emptied the magazine at the core. When even the VAP ran out of bullets, James switched to his combat knife, climbed aboard the beast and started hack and slashed the core in pure rage. He screamed on top of his lungs when he jammed the knife into the core, the core cracked, exploded and the beast disintegrated into nothingness.

The missile defenses activated and the beast was being destroyed one by one by the defense system, it took less than half a minute and the sky around the base was cleared off from any remaining Flyers. Ryan sighed in relief as he holstered his G46, at least they're able to fend them off without having the entire base collapse on them. It was then Ryan realized that James still on his enraged mode, he immediately moved to calmed him down.

Ryan ran toward James who were still heaving with uncontrolled rage then grabbed his left shoulder, James who was blinded by his rage swung his knife toward Ryan who failed to avoid it due to the suddenness of the slash. Regardless, Ryan took held of James left hand and socked James jaw with his left hand harshly that James fell to the ground. That's when James realized on what he had done, Ryan's combat googles was sliced into two and fell to the ground, his balaclava was also damaged by the knife slash.

"Control yourself, soldier! It's dead already! You'll end up hurting someone if you don't control your emotion!" Ryan shouted at James.

"…Y…You're right…I'm sorry, sir" James said after he calmed himself down.

James widen his eyes when he noticed that Ryan's lower face was red, it took a while before he realized that it was Ryan's own blood. James dropped the knife on his left hand with a mixed feeling, he was ashamed and disgusted at himself for attacking his own friend just because he lost his temper. Ryan only walked past him while tapping his right shoulder twice, he approached someone that was writhing on the ground. It was Bronya who was writhing in pain due to being thrown by the shockwave, Ryan wordlessly took her and carried her in princess carry to the temporary treatment location.

The sky grumbled and rain started pouring down on the base, one by one every Valkyries and Vikings dispersed to resume their original tasks and some helped those that were injured in the recent attack. Kallen somberly dropped the machine gun on her hands, she approached one of the downed Valkyrie and helped her up before bringing her to the temporary treatment location...Morale was low, everyone now realized that their fastest way out was no longer a possibility.

.

"…Well, this will definitely leave a scar" Sakura said to Ryan.

"It's that deep?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"It's a fifteen centimeters combat knife, Ryan. What do you expect? Were it not for your combat googles, the scar would've been deeper and longer" Sakura explained.

It was hours after the attack on the base happened, its currently three o'clock in the afternoon but the sky was black with clouds and the rain didn't eased up even for a bit. Sakura was in front of Ryan who was seated on a table in the first floor of the command center's reception area, the injured had been moved to this location after their previous shelter had a gaping hole on it after being hit by stray energy bolts. It took a while but they did it and now everyone was resting, they had enough for today's fill of combat.

Ryan managed to get a close view of Sakura's face as she seriously inspected the wound on his balaclava-less face, she didn't even realize that he was staring at her. She's still beautiful even when her face had dirt and speck of patient's blood on it, her violet eyes were focused on his wound, her eyelashes was long and pretty and her soft looking pink lips was frowning…He could do this all day. But it had to end, because Sakura suddenly produced a medical syringe with pain killers on it. Ryan instantly knew on what will happen, he only leaned his head to the right a little and Sakura injected him on his neck.

Kallen entered the command center after she returned from the armory, she approached Ryan who was lying on the table and she also watched on how Sakura carefully stitched the wound on his face slowly. Ryan noticed Kallen was staring so he cocked his left eyebrow as if to ask her what's wrong, Kallen sighed and she proceed to sat on the chair beside Ryan.

"…You alright, Ryan?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"…I should be asking you that, you've been in a hard fight with those Honkai beast" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Yeah but you're the one who had to clear an entire base, rescued us and now we are stuck on this island" Kallen said somberly.

"Not permanently stuck yet…and my answer would be, goddamn tired. It's like the fate itself is conspiring against us…Hah, have you eat yet?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Later…my appetite is kind of nonexistent right now" Kallen said to Ryan.

Ryan only hummed in acknowledgement, the three of them spend the rest of the time silently enjoying each others company…After fifteen minutes, Sakura was done stitching Ryan's face. Sakura gave him a small mirror so he could see how was his injury, he sighed on what he saw. The slash went from his left cheek, through his nose, almost hitting his right eye and ended just a bit above his right eyebrow which was now split into two…Sakura wasn't joking when she said this will leave a scar, but Ryan supposed he could worry about it later.

"…Thanks Sakura, for sewing back my face" Ryan said earnestly to her.

"You're welcome…If you ask me, you still look handsome even with that wound, Ryan. So, don't worry about it" Sakura said while smiling.

"…Yeah, it kind of add some roguish charm to it even" Kallen joined in while smiling.

"Hahahaha, I feel better now…Go rest you two, eat something or take a shower…We'll plan our next move first" Ryan said as he walked up the stairs.

"Will do" Kallen said while smiling.

"Come on, Kallen…let's see what's available on that MRE menu" Sakura said to Kallen.

"I'd still take your cooking any day than MRE's, Sakura" Kallen said while smiling tiredly.

"Same goes for me, but we can't be picky for now. I'll cook a feast when we're back on Soukai" Sakura said to Kallen.

"Now I can't wait to get out of this freaking island!" Kallen said.

Kallen and Sakura reached the canteen, it was jam-packed with Valkyries and Vikings who were eating their rations. They arrived on the counter, a second year Valkyrie handed both of them their rations and they grabbed water filled cups before they went and search for empty seats. A hand raised and waved at them, it was Kiana, Bronya and Mei who were seated together with their rations half eaten. Sakura and Kallen immediately joined them, both also started eating immediately after greeting the girls.

"…What a day" Mei said.

"Agreed…I can't wait to go back to Soukai" Kallen said to Mei.

"Ryan-kun is already planning something with Namira-san, I presume?" Mei asked Kallen.

"We last saw him climbing the stairs of the command center, it's very likely…Kiana, how's your head? Still feeling headache?" Kallen asked for Kiana's health.

Kiana was already able to sit and walk just in short time, she only need the pain killers to stave off the headache. She's eating her rations which was dried chicken when she heard Kallen asked her condition, she immediately turned her head toward Kallen while grinning to shown that she was alright.

"Nothing I couldn't handle, Kallen! I'm feeling lots better compared to few hours ago" Kiana said while grinning.

"Good to see you was fine already, just don't push it too hard, Kiana…Bronya, how about you?" Kallen asked Bronya.

"Bronya is currently fine too, the nausea caused by the shockwave had subsided. Bronya is ready to go if needed" Bronya said then munched on her meal.

"I see, tell us if you feeling sick or uncomfortable, Bronya. We'll help" Kallen said while smiling.

"Bronya understood…Thank you, Kallen" Bronya answered.

Meanwhile, Ryan was back on the operation center room and he was faced with the demoralized occupants. Namira leaned on the table with frown on her face, Benio was massaging her right temple to calmed her migraine and Michael looked down as he typed about few things on the console in front of him before he looked at Ryan. Namira sighed as she stood up, she went toward the glass board and stared at the map for a while.

"This is our last gamble. We have to make this work" Namira said to Ryan.

"Right, but no matter how you look at it, this will require some firepower to do…The town center is one of the place where the civilians gathered when the outbreak started, as a result all of them got turned near the building…How heavy is that dish?" Ryan asked the people around.

"About…a hundred kilograms if I'm not mistaken" Benio said to Ryan.

"That's…quite heavy" Ryan said uneasily.

"Not for a Valkyrie, a hundred kilograms is light enough to carry around. If it still does, phase shifter would solve the carrying issue" Fuuka said to Ryan.

Ryan felt embarrassed for not thinking that sooner, guess he was also demoralized and couldn't think clearly for now. He theorized that they will have to move in a small team instead pushing through with firepower, stealth would be more preferable on this scenario.

"Right, I didn't think of that…Okay then…based on the schematics, the generator is located on the underground level two. Is it still active?" Ryan asked the others.

"Now that we can't be sure, there's a chance that the generator took damage and had to be restarted first. Someone need to go down there" Michael said to Ryan.

"I'm in" Ryan answered without missing a beat.

Michael was about to nod his head before he did a double back and stared at Ryan, this guy almost had his face split in half and he volunteered himself to participate in this mission? Was he confident or a battle maniac? It seems Ryan was the only Viking that always involved in a combat situation, granted he was unofficially the best among them when he possessed two hands but this was pushing it.

"You're injured, commander!" Michael said with his eyes half closed.

"So what? It's only my face it's not like I can't fight" Ryan said while his eyes also half closed.

"…You have a point. The rooster is set for Vikings?" Namira asked Ryan.

"Already set since few hours ago. How about you girls?" Ryan asked Namira back.

"Yeah, pretty much the same. Fuuka, take Bronya and Kallen to the town center to help The Vikings…If they fall then so our way out of this damned island, take two others that fit for combat with you" Namira instructed Fuuka.

"Understood, excuse me as I will gather them and brief them about the situation" Fuuka said.

Fuuka gave a polite bow before she exited the operation center, Ryan walked to the glass board and inspected the map of the town. It would be difficult to pull off a precise route for them because they're not aware on the enemy position, Namira joined Ryan before she turned and spoke to him.

"…I have to ask, if this also fails, then what?" Namira asked Ryan.

"...We'll think of something when that happens…But I hope to god this will work out" Ryan said to Namira.

"Yeah…but, in the event this also fail…We would have approximately a week worth of supply" Namira said.

"…There's one more thing that have been bothering me…We supposedly were out of contact for hours now…Why didn't they send any reconnaissance drones? Or even a team to investigate? The Honkai Energy eruption have become even larger that it started to affect the sky, that much of a cloud would hinder satellite view and thermal imaging wouldn't help much with how thick the clouds are" Ryan expressed his thoughts.

This bugged him to no end but he only voiced it out just now, Schicksal should've sent something when they realized they had been out of contact with a task force of their size in a deserted island. It's not like they could go anywhere, their rides was now a pile of scrap. So far he didn't see any indication that Schicksal planned an investigation or possible rescue, not even a single drone could be seen patrolling the island. What was their intention in doing this to them?

"…Something must have prevented them from acting, but what and for how long?" Namira asked out loud.

"Right, that's why it's better if we try to get out of this island by ourselves" Ryan stated to Namira.

"Yeah…you better rest for a while, you're going to need every strength you could muster on this next mission. We'll commence it at dusk, how's that?" Namira asked Ryan.

"…Plenty of time to rest, fine by me. Michael, Benio, you two should rest too. We're going to need your guidance" Ryan said to the both of them.

"In case you didn't notice, Benio and I have been resting since five minutes ago. Momose is on her way up with our rations too, we'll do just fine in here" Michael said to Ryan while staring at the terminal's screen.

"Alright then, suit yourself" Ryan said.

Walking out of the operation center, Ryan made his way to the armory instead finding a comfortable place to just lay down and get some nap. He greeted two Vikings who were on guard in front of the building and let him in, Ryan was faced with large array of weaponries and equipment. He unconsciously grinned as he made his way to the rifle section, this was like a candy shop for adults.

"Huh…so many to choose, so little time" Ryan said while grinning.

The door was harshly opened and Ryan stared at who just did that, he saw Kiana with two Vikings staring at her back before they minded their own business and closed the door as she made her way toward Ryan with serious expression. Ryan got a feeling that this won't be a happy talk, that much was confirmed.

"K-Kiana, what is it?" Ryan asked her.

"I heard everything from Fuuka, Ryan. Allow me to go with you!" Kiana said to Ryan.

"Sorry but I can't do that" Ryan immediately answered.

"Why!? I'm already able to fight as usual again! Having one of my eyes covered won't even hinder me on the field, I'll wreak havoc if they messed with us!" Kiana said to Ryan.

Ryan thought that the answer was clear as day, between both of them then Ryan's injury was nothing compared to her. She may claimed that she could fight well but Ryan didn't wanted to take any chances, red zone was unpredictable at times so it would be better if Kiana could stay on the base…Now, what would he say to persuade her to lay off that plan of her?

"All the more reason for you to stay here. Kiana, trust me, I'll get the job done…you need to stay here, these girls depends on you. You're among the skilled Valkyries that could still fight Kiana, we'll need everyone that were strong to protect the wounded" Ryan tried to persuade her.

Kiana recognized this pattern because this had happened once in the past, it resulted in ten years of separation and she did not want to experience that again. Kiana gritted her teeth and clenched her fist, she looked at Ryan with furrowed eyebrows and mixed of emotions swirled within her. He would not get away with this again, she will make sure of it!

"Ryan I beg you, don't you do this to me again! You never came back before, I don't want to experience that for the second time! At least, if I go with you-"

Kiana felt her vision blurred, Ryan saw that tears welled up on her right eye and his mind immediately went on alert. Ryan pulled Kiana in without any hesitation and hugged her figure tightly, he couldn't bear to see a girl cry to be honest…Kiana's arms clung on Ryan's back armor plating as her tears started flowing, he smelled of gunpowder, dirt and blood but strangely she felt at ease…Why? This was the first time Ryan touched her so casually after they were reunited.

"Please Kiana, we will be fine. Everyone that will go are among the best on our academy, we could make it just fine…Don't show this sad face please, it doesn't suit you at all…Come on, where's that cheerful Kiana that always had a grin on her face?" Ryan asked while grinning.

"…Alright, fine…but you better come back as soon as you're done!" Kiana said, her face buried on Ryan's armored chest.

"Will do, you crybaby" Ryan said while snickering.

"…And whose fault was that!?" Kiana said in annoyed tone.

"…Sorry" Ryan cringed as he said it.

"And don't move until my tears stop!" Kiana further said.

"Yes ma'am" Ryan answered but with smile this time.

Outside the armory, the two Vikings alongside Agus, Han, Igor and Rahn were standing in front of the armory's door. The rain fell even harder than before combined with strong wind and these six Vikings still able to stood still with impassive face, Rahn checked on his wristwatch before he sighed.

"Can we go in yet? We'll get cold if we wait any longer" Rahn said out loud.

"Don't be like that, give those two a couple of minutes more" Igor said to Rahn.

"What are those two doing? Making out?" Han asked to the guarding Viking.

"Don't know sir, she looked pissed so we let her in without any question" The Viking said.

"I swear, I will go in no matter what they were doing in two minutes!" Rahn said.

But not even half a minute later, the door was opened and they came face to face with Kiana. Her eyes were red and puffy, she sniffled as she saw them and she tried to wiped any sign of tears. All of The Vikings in the entrance immediately looked inside with furrowed eyebrows toward Ryan who was standing awkwardly, this will be tough to explain.

"Dude…" Rahn said.

"…What the hell did you do to her?" Agus asked Ryan.

"Did you make her cry?" Han asked Ryan too.

Ryan only sighed hard and scratched his own head, how can he explain this without creating further misunderstanding? He was about to speak when he saw Mei, Kallen, Bronya and Fuuka also stared at him from the entrance after they saw Kiana. Ryan immediately facepalmed and he yelped in pain, his luck could never stay consistent!

.

Two jeeps were making their way to the dead town in heavy rain, the sky was already black and visibility only fifteen meters ahead didn't help at all. Ryan was busy navigating the muddy road by driving slowly while Igor followed closely behind riding his own jeep, Ryan noticed that the ride had been in total silent this whole time, he glanced to the left side and saw Mei looking outside while resting her head on the seat. He checked the rearview mirrors and saw Bronya, Kallen and Fuuka did the same thing.

"Girls, you alright?" Ryan asked out loud.

"Just had a lot in mind" Mei answered.

"Yeah, this heavy rain didn't help at all" Kallen said.

Kallen wore forestland military fatigue from the armory above her Sundenjager outfit because of how cold it became, if she knew she'd be stranded for this long she would opted to wear academy uniform which was far warmer. Fuuka, Kallen and Bronya didn't had any problem except her because of that, Kallen started thinking on creating customized version of her outfit for winter use.

"Your outfit have always been quite revealing, Kallen-san. You might want a separate version to wear on cold places" Mei said while looking back.

"You know, I just thought of that…I'll do it right away after we're done with all of this" Kallen said while smiling a bit.

"Might be a bit late to ask but, why would your mission clothes are that revealing, Kallen?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"It's ease of movement, that's why my gun katas worked well. I really need the agility" Kallen answered Ryan.

"…Wait, won't spandex solved the issue? It covers your whole body and its flexible enough to give you that agility" Ryan asked with his left eyebrow cocked.

"I think I know on what I should use as a base for my new mission clothes, thanks Ryan" Kallen smiled at him.

A sudden bump on the road left everyone shocked and Ryan stopped the jeep, Igor did the same thing but he saw something that Ryan just passed on the ground. Ryan grabbed his G46 and opened the door, this will need some investigation because that bump didn't caused by a hole.

"Stay in the jeep girls, I'll check what's wrong" Ryan said as he got out.

"Be careful" Mei said to Ryan.

"Yeah, I will" Ryan said then closed the door.

He was lucky that there's a spare waterproof balaclava on the base's armory that he wore alongside a spare red colored combat googles, it really helped him in preventing the gauze and the bandage on his face from getting wet because of the rain. Han and Igor came out of the jeep behind Ryan to inspect on what did they just passed, it was quite big of a mass judging from the car light that illuminates it.

"What's this?" Han asked Ryan.

"No idea...but it's humanoid" Ryan said.

"…I'll flip it" Igor said.

"Alright" Ryan and Han readied their suppressed G46.

Igor carefully touched the humanoid mass and flipped it over, Igor immediately retreated while Han and Ryan aimed their guns at it. It was a human male, a normal human but he already died when they found him. Han noticed some red stain on his head and crouched to took a closer look, there's a hole on the man's right temple.

"...Male, Asian, looks about mid twenties, probably died for hours already judging from the skin tone…This hole…match .45 ACP rounds, from either pistol or sub machine gun now I can't be sure of that" Han said to Ryan and Igor.

"The point is, this guy was killed by another human" Igor said.

"Yeap. What do we do, commander?" Han asked Ryan.

"Take photo of him, might be a clue to something here…What are the chances of murder happened on this small island? Was he got killed by the independent faction? Common thugs? Or something much worse?" Ryan said as he inspected the wound.

"You guys done?" Kallen asked on the radio.

"Just in a bit, we got a dead body here and he was killed by a human" Ryan said on the radio.

"Oh…Alright, take your time" Kallen said.

They gathered all the evidence they could and resumed their mission, it was another ten minute travel until they reached the outskirt of the town but at least the rain was just light shower for now. The light was out, it was dark and there's subtle sounds of groaning and growling coming from the town. The expedition team parked their jeeps on the town's outskirt, it's never a good idea to bring in a vehicle into a dead zone like this because it won't take five minutes before you will get surrounded by zombies.

They got out from their vehicle, The Valkyries turned on their holographic lenses while The Vikings turned on their night vision mode on their googles. Nowadays, it's not uncommon to find a hybrid version such as combat googles with augmented reality feature coupled with night vision or thermal imaging function. The holographic lens were special lenses that enabled the user to interact with hologram function and gave them real time HUD broadcasted directly into their eyes, it was a handy equipment because it also capable enhancing someone's vision capability that they could see in the dark.

Mei and Kallen took position in the front when they held their left fist up, everyone behind them immediately stopped moving. Kallen used the lenses to zoomed in toward something that was moving around hundred meters to their front, she grimaced when she saw what it was. Sentient Zombies, this one carried a bow with it and it had range as far as two hundred meters. The arrow was created out of solidified Honkai energy, either could pierce you or explode then burn the nearby area like an incendiary grenade.

"Its an archer" Kallen said.

"One shot of that arrow and we're goners, huh" Rahn said.

"...Step aside, let the me handle this" Agus said.

Agus prepared his suppressed DMR and aimed through the scope, less than three seconds later Agus squeezed the trigger. The rifle fired and the 7.62mm bullet pierced the head of the archer, the archer was downed when the Honkai core was pierced by the bullet and it disintegrated after that.

"As expected of our sniper, that range isn't a problem for you" Han said to Agus.

"Clear, let's move" Kallen said.

The group continued making their way to the town center building, they often opted to took an alley instead of the streets because of how it was littered with zombies. They reached the town center but all of them immediately retreated back into the alley they came from, it's because zombie was everywhere around the wall of the building. They need to get inside without having to alert the entire town dead occupants about their presence, circling the building was not going to be effective due to most of the clear route were nonexistent.

"…Motherfucker" Han cussed.

"Whoa man, language!" Agus said.

"Can't help it! Look, how are we going to get pass those mass of walking corpses!?" Han asked the group.

"You're the smart one! Figure something out!" Agus said to Han.

"Tone it down you two!" Fuuka warned Han and Agus.

Igor predicted that the wall were at least three meters high and sixty centimeters wide if they used standard construction materials, Igor then looked at the building beside the alley they currently used for cover and an idea popped up on his head. He tapped Ryan's shoulder who looked at him and his eyes narrowed when Igor just pointed his hand upwards, Ryan looked up and sighed because he realized this way of entering may broke their bones.

"So Igor got a plan and that's to climb the building besides us and then jump inside the wall" Ryan said to the group.

"You really forgot that we DIDN'T wore Sleipnir Armor" Han said with his eyes half closed.

"No, Igor's suggestion made sense. The Valkyries would enter first, they could create some loud noises to lure these zombies away then we'll climb the walls. Who got the phase shifter?" Ryan asked the group.

"I do" Fuuka said.

"You and Bronya could go ahead and go to the rooftop and wait for us to go in. Mei, Kallen, please serve as an overwatch…Let's move" Ryan said to the group.

The Valkyries climbed the building through the fire escape stairs beside it, The Vikings were keeping their eyes on the street's condition. Kallen and Mei ran and jumped first to the town center. They landed, made sure the area was cleared and Fuuka followed by Bronya jumped next. Fuuka landed smoothly on the ground while Bronya hovered down, they then took their position while Bronya summoned her Project Bunny. She then fired a mortar type energy bolt somewhere away from their position.

The bolt impacted a building and the resulting explosion alerted the zombies, they clumsily made their way to the explosion location. When the streets were cleared, The Vikings immediately approached the wall. Igor and Ryan stand with their back on the wall while Han, Agus and Rahn used the leverage they gave to climbed up the wall. Ryan then used Igor before he helped Igor climbed the wall by pulling his hand, all of them made it safely inside the wall.

"We're inside the wall" Ryan said on the radio.

"Alright, Bronya and I is already on the rooftops. Kallen, Mei, how is it?" Fuuka asked on the radio.

"It worked, they already crowding the explosion site. We're cleared for now" Kallen reported on the radio.

"Alright, you two could join us, we'll need extra hands for this" Ryan said to the girls.

Mei and Kallen jumped down from the second floor balcony of the building and joined with The Vikings, they approached the main entrance quietly. Guns drawn, the double doors seen some sign of fight with several scratch marks around it and they saw bullet casing scattered around the floor to the main entrance.

"Tempest Actual, we're ready to begin" Ryan said on the radio.

"Understood, our drone is on the air. We got a visual confirmation on you and the others, you're cleared to proceed" Namira said on the radio.

"Roger…03, open it" Ryan said to Han.

Han gently pushed the large wooden double doors, he peeked inside and bullet hails immediately greeted him. Han retreated after a bullet hit his helmet, Igor, Rahn and Agus immediately stayed clear of the door while Ryan, Kallen and Mei dived to the nearby wall for cover.

"Hah…What the fuck?! What's wrong with my luck today!?" Han said while breathing hard.

"What was that?!" Namira asked on the radio.

"Someone just shot 03, unknown who at this time. Moving to investigate!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Roger, be careful!" Namira said.

"Hey! Who's inside!? Are you civilians!?" Ryan shouted to whoever inside the hall.

Only silence followed for a while after that but they could clearly heard some rummaging sounds behind the doors, Igor nudged his head to ask permission to peek and engage but Ryan shook his head. The Vikings turned on their thermal imaging function on their googles and saw around four people inside the hall, all of them had weapons on their hands.

"…Yeah, so what if we are civilians?! Are you going to murder us like those you did when we asked for protection inside your base?!" A male answered.

"No, we're not with them! We're with Schicksal!" Ryan said.

"...How could we trust you?!" Another man asked him.

"Alright, I'm coming in, alone, without weapons. Just let me talk" Ryan said.

Ryan handed his G46 to Kallen who was narrowing her eyes as if she's disagreed with Ryan's plan, the said man just shrugged and proceed to opened the double doors slowly. They heard the sounds of weapon being readied and Kallen alongside Mei's breath hitched in apprehension, they watched as Ryan held his hands up and walked inside the hall.

There's four people inside, two men and two women. Judging by their clothes, one male looked like a police officer and the other was a paramedic. One of the women wore a business suit while the other wore a sailor uniform…Ryan predicted that the two of them were teacher and student, he kept his hands up and stand in the entrance.

"Look, it's chaos out there and we don't want us as few remaining humans here started killing each other. We're with Schicksal and we don't want to harm civilians…We just need you to let us do our job" Ryan said to the survivors.

"…and that being?" The policeman asked.

"We were stranded here, without a means to contact our base for evacuation. The only way to contact them is to set up a signal broadcaster dish on this building, we did that, we get through, we request evac and you four could come with us" Ryan said to the survivors.

Yeah, Ryan had learned that in order for survivor to cooperate they usually need some kind of leverage. Not that every survivor that Ryan met weren't kind people, most of them require something worth their time and effort if they're going to help…that's just basic human instinct on this chaotic condition, this one was no different. The survivors looked at each other before the teacher lowered her KM10 SMG, the others followed suit and Ryan simply whistled to indicate the situation was clear.

The Vikings and Valkyries entered the emergency light illuminated hall and they tried their best to remain neutral, Han had to calmed himself down and convinced himself that these civilians only wanted to protected themselves. Kallen handed Ryan his G46 back and Ryan nodded his head in appreciation, he then approached the survivor group.

"We want to make sure the Honkai generator works, it's on the second floor of underground. Do you know how's the situation inside it?" Ryan asked them.

"You won't want to go down there, it's all bad news…but if you insist, you're free to go" The policeman said.

"We got no choice…you four should stay here, we'll go in" Ryan said to them.

"The elevator is out of power sir, you have to use the stairs. And uh…if you're going to the generator room, you might want to avoid the first underground floor all together" The teacher explained.

"Why? What's in there?" Han asked the teacher.

"It was covered by landmines and zombies…we don't know who set it up, we lost two people when they tried to look for more supplies" The teacher said.

This information immediately made the group suspicious, there's something going on in this island before the Honkai eruption created this entire hellhole. But that was supposed to happen two days ago, the body they found look like it's only died for few hours tops but now there were landmines set on the first underground floor? What for? None of these made sense…Han decided to show the survivor the image of the corpse they found, he took out his portable digital camera and show them the picture.

"Sorry for the gross image, but do you know this man?" Han asked them.

"…Hey, that's Kim! He's dead? When did you take this picture!?" The policeman asked.

"Half an hour ago, maybe. When was the last time you see him?" Han asked the policeman.

"This noon, he disappeared when we were making our way from the outskirt of the town…is that bullet hole? Who shot him?" The policeman asked.

This noon, that man was still alive then just minutes ago they found him dead in the middle of the road with bullet hole on his head…Ryan stared at Han with wide eyes after hearing that statement, Han did the same because both of them realized one thing…There's a fourth party on this island with unknown agenda and they're possibly the one that launched that EMP missiles.

"Tempest Actual, lock down our captured base immediately! We got confirmation on another faction on this island with unknown purpose, tell 02 to take some of us and patrol the perimeter. Any signs of intruders need to be taken care off immediately!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Damnit! This further complicates our situation, copy that 01!" Namira said.

"I don't like where this is going" Igor said.

"None of us do…Alright, let's focus on our mission first…Let's go to that generator room" Ryan said.

"Then follow me" The policeman said.

They traveled to another double door in the hallway, it was locked but it seems the policeman had the key with him. They opened the door and The Vikings immediately aimed their guns, the stairwell was clear of any zombies but they can't let their guard down.

"There you go, we'll be on standby back in the hall" The policeman said while walking away.

"03, 04, you both stand guard this door. Girls, you're with us" Ryan said.

"Good luck sir" Agus said.

Mei summoned her katana and Kallen summoned her Anaconda revolvers, they entered the stairwell and descended into the underground while making as little sound as possible. Rahn was leading while Igor guarded their rear, they passed the first floor unnoticed but on their way to the second floor there were two zombies strolling in front of the door leading to the generator room. The group stopped moving, they shouldn't use their firearms even if they're suppressed. The sound was still loud enough in close proximity and especially on this silent stairwell.

"Let me handle this" Mei said.

Mei jumped down the stairs without hesitation and landed between the two zombies, she sliced the head of one then stabbed the other in the heart under two seconds. Both zombies fell to the floor before they disintegrated, Mei then looked at the group where she gave a thumbs up and the group descended the stairs.

"Wow, that's skillfully handled" Ryan commented.

"Thank you" Mei said while smiling.

Rahn opened the door to the generator room and everyone entered it with weapons drawn, they found the generator offline and there's a lot of bodies scattered around the area. Most of them worn engineer clothes and hardhat, they're definitely the maintenance worker for the generator.

"What killed these people?" Rahn asked.

"…Don't know, but I suggest you don't touch them" Igor said.

"...There's several holes on their bodies" Mei said.

"More of our 'mysterious group'?" Kallen asked.

"Probably. Leave them be for now" Ryan said.

They reached the generator, Ryan turned on the control panel for the generator and it immediately displayed the current status of the generator alongside it's last activation. Since it's not enough info, Ryan messed with the command prompt to view the log. Data bits immediately filled the screen and Ryan searched the most recent one. It said that the generator didn't fail but was purposely deactivated three hours ago, Ryan squinted his eyes when he saw the word 'Manual shutdown' on the log.

"You're awfully quiet, what's wrong?" Rahn asked Ryan.

"This generator didn't fail, somebody deactivated this generator on purpose…Why?" Ryan asked the group.

"This fourth faction had to do something with it, I suppose" Fuuka said on the radio.

"Most likely…Alright, I'm going to start the generator now" Ryan said on the radio.

Tweaking several commands on the console, Ryan managed to successfully booted the console to activate the generator. The generator glowed blue and electricity was back, the lights switched to normal lights and the room suddenly felt crowded. The engineers were on their feet and stared at the group and vice versa, the staring contest last for five seconds before the group realized on what was going on.

"…Aw shit!" Ryan suddenly exclaimed.

The zombie engineers charged at the group and they used their weapons to defend themselves, it was a surprise attack but luckily the group made it unscathed. They were breathing heavily though after their adrenaline rush was over, Ryan reloaded his G46 while leaning on the generator.

"…I forgot the double tap rules for the undead!" Ryan said to the others.

"All of us did! More importantly, we got power back on. Fuuka, it's you and Bronya's turn" Kallen said on the radio.

"Understood!" Fuuka said.

Fuuka and Bronya already set the dish on the rooftop, Fuuka took a power conduit that was connected to the electric socket on the wall and connected it to the dish. The dish went online and Bronya immediately summoned a holographic screen in front of her, Michael and Benio's face popped up on the right side of the screen.

"Alright! The network is established! Bronya, could you scan for a nearby signal broadcast that belongs to Schicksal? We'll monitor the activity from here" Benio said on the radio.

"Bronya understood, searching for Schicksal's owned channel" Bronya said.

Bronya searched for any available channel and she spotted one, it was Schicksal's operation channel for far eastern division. Bronya immediately made contact with it and wait for a feedback from the operator on the other side, finally a connection was established and Bronya immediately connected it with the new radio channel. Fuuka and Bronya then descended from the rooftops.

"We got a connection, 01. Ryan should switch to channel five" Bronya said.

"Alright…Mayday, mayday, mayday, this is Task Force Terra of Schicksal's Far Eastern Division. We are stranded with no way out from an island, we got wounded and in need of immediate evac, how copy? Over" Ryan said on the radio.

"Affirmative, this SS Ganymede, good to hear from you Task Force Terra. We'll sent an evac to your location, we'll need grid reference, over" The operator said on the radio.

"…Understood, wait one!" Ryan said to the operator.

Bronya and Fuuka already head down from the rooftops and rejoined with Ryan and the others inside the town center, Bronya sent the coordinates for the town center to the SS Ganymede.

"Coordinates sent! Reference, town center with walls around it. Be advised, there's still lot of zombies around" Ryan said to the operator.

"Copy that, we've received your coordinates. Standby, we'll be there in ten minutes" The operator said.

"Understood, we'll be waiting! Out!" Ryan said.

The Vikings and The Valkyries slumped on the floor in relief, this nightmare would finally be over. It's been almost fourteen hours since they were dropped on this island and they will finally get out, Ryan contacted the base in different channel and he could heard lots of cheers in the operation center room.

"Tempest Actual, we did it! We're finally getting out of here, they'll pick us up first before we'll direct them to the base" Ryan said on the radio.

"...Understood, it felt damn good to hear that we will get out of here. We'll pack up right now…Michael, please deactivate the anti air defenses, we won't want them to target our ticket out" Namira instructed.

"Yes ma'am, give me a minute" Michael said.

"We're getting out of here? Oh god, finally some hope" The paramedic said.

.

The wait was long and agonizing, the group opted to stand guard outside to make sure the coast was clear before the dropship would descend on the building. Finally the ten minutes time was up, Ryan then contacted channel five to request the status of the evacuation.

"SS Ganymede, this is Task Force Terra. What's the status on the evacuation, over?" Ryan asked.

"…It should be there in few moments, SS Ganymede out" The operator replied.

Ryan looked out when he heard the roar of jet engine in the distant, he and the others looked at the cloudy night sky. They try to searched for any sign of incoming dropship, but so far they didn't see one. Then, they spotted something moving out from the clouds, it was an F-30 Fighter Jet.

F-30 was a single seated, twin engines, fighter bomber craft that was widely in use due to its easy production process and relatively cheap. It had triangular designs without rear fins to maximized its stealth capabilities, the jet suffered a bit in stability factor because of that but the turning performance was impressive. All of the currently available armed force in the world at least had one unit of this aircraft, there were just that many.

The group was confused on what was the fighter doing here, then it immediately made sense that it maybe was an escort for the dropship. The jet circled around the town before it gained a bit of altitude and headed for the town center.

"What's it doing?" Han asked the others.

"No idea, probably to make sure the LZ is secure" Rahn said.

"Yeah…they could just contact us, you know?" Kallen said to Rahn.

"What are the chances that the radio broadcaster was broken?" Rahn asked.

"We should ask…This is Task Force Terra, we see your escort fighter SS Ganymede" Ryan said.

The jet flew back up from it's position and it flew back to the east, this confuse everyone in the group. Why would it leaves without answering them? Then, Bronya spotted something fell to their position. It was oval shaped, colored black and it fell at a fast rate. Agus spotted the same thing but compared to Bronya he immediately knew what it was, he knew they just got fucked.

"...Sir, it's JDAM bomb!" Agus said out loud.

"Motherfucker! Hit the-" Ryan didn't finished his words.

The bomb impacted the town center straight in the middle, exploded and blown the entire building in a massive explosion. The Vikings and The Valkyries were thrown back to the wall harshly, the debris rained everywhere and they fell to the ground from the explosion's shockwave. They were near the walls of the town center and its around fifty meters away due to it being a parking lot, the impact still managed to threw them off, hit the walls and instantly knocked few of them unconscious.

Among them, The Valkyries were the ones that stay conscious due to their inhuman strength and constitution. Mei coughed and she saw the town center was now but rubble, she's certain that the survivor inside were dead too as there's no way someone will survive that blast. Bronya sat on the ground as Fuuka treated the gash on her right arm with first aid kit, Kallen groaned as she corrected her dislocated left shoulder resulted from impacting the wall with it.

"…Why? Why would they do this!?" Mei asked out loud.

"…They're not Schicksal, they just pretend to be one to get a chance to eliminate us…Hah…I'm too tired to think straight…How's the boys?" Kallen asked.

Kallen walked to see that The Vikings were unconscious, Kallen removed the rubbles on some of them and inspected them for any life threatening injuries. It's a miracle that none of them got their necks broken due to the force they hit the wall, all of them were unconscious though and Kallen heard of familiar groans amidst the sound of burning building. It was a matter of time before the zombies will surround them once more…Kallen heard someone groaned under her and he saw Ryan started moving, Kallen immediately helped Ryan sit and leaned him on the wall.

"Ugh…my head felt like it's...blown off or something!" Ryan said as he clutched his head.

"…Hah, we preferred that over you dying, right? Ryan, can you hear and see me?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"…All I see is a gorgeous lady starring worriedly at me…Don't worry Kallen, just give me some time to…rest a bit" Ryan said as he coughed.

"…Take your time, you flirt" Kallen said as she smiled and raised herself up.

Kallen approached Mei who checked for any damage on her katana, she swung it once to get the dirt off before she stored it back on her phase shifter. Mei noticed Kallen approaching her and turned to face her, Mei's face shown she's close to breaking point with how she's frowning and her tired eyes shown it all.

"01, our drone is downed and patrol reports of an explosion on your site! What's going on!?" Namira asked on the radio.

"This is Nox Actual…that evac is a bluff, we were attacked by unidentified F-30…01 is currently resting…We're heading back to you, out" Mei answered in even tone.

"…This would cause further drop in morale" Kallen said grimly.

"…Can't help it, we may just got stuck on this island forever. Bronya-chan, can you move?" Mei asked Bronya.

"…Bronya is good to move, Mei…what do Bronya need to do?" Bronya asked Mei.

"Please carry the unconscious Vikings, we have to go back to the base" Mei said to Bronya.

"Bronya, roger that" Bronya said as she summoned Project Bunny.

Mei took Ryan's arm and shouldered him as they started to move away from the town center, Bronya carried the unconscious Vikings on Project Bunny's backside and right arm while she rode in it's right shoulder. Midway to the jeep they saw that their escape route were cut off, the zombies making their way to the town center managed to surround them. Things weren't looking good for them, Fuuka was about to fight before Mei held a hand at her.

"Fuuka-san, you need to get the rest to the jeep. I'll cover the rear flank" Mei said.

"…Are you going to transform?" Fuuka simply asked.

"I see no other option" Mei simply answered too.

Fuuka only nodded her head, the girls knew on what was Fuuka meant by 'transforming' so they'll let Mei handled the rear guards. Ryan squinted his eyes when he heard the conversation between Fuuka and Mei, his suspicion was off the charts.

"Okay…Ryan, you need to come with us" Fuuka said to him.

"No" Ryan answered firmly.

"What? Hey, you're injured! You will only be a hindrance to Mei-" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Kallen…I will stay with Mei for this one, I need you to trust me. Someone has to find out a way out of here now" Ryan said while smiling confidently.

That's partially the reason, he couldn't just let Mei single handedly being a rear guard and he's actually curious on how will she do it. Ryan also planned on searching any way out of the island, that means he would have to stay on the town then explore every possible option. Fuuka then realized something, she approached Kallen and grabbed her left hand.

"…He's right, Kallen. If anyone could survive this, it's them both. We have to go" Fuuka said to her.

"This doesn't make any sense! Ryan, no matter how skilled you are, fighting an entire town's population is reckless beyond belief!" Kallen still argued with him.

"We don't have time to argue Kallen! Just go!" Ryan said to Kallen.

"…Just so you know, I'm mad at you, so will Sakura and Kiana will be disappointed! If you die Ryan fucking Taurus…" Kallen said to Ryan in annoyed tone.

"I won't, Mei and I will get through this. Good luck guys! We'll rendezvous as soon as we could!" Ryan said while smiling.

Fuuka nodded her head and she proceed to open a path for them to escape, Bronya gave Ryan and Mei a meaningful stare before she went to join Fuuka. Kallen screamed in frustration before she also go, the combined might of the three Valkyries successfully created an opening in the large zombie horde. Kallen ran to the jeep, get inside one and started the engines. Bronya placed Han and Igor on the jeep rear compartment and Agus with Rahn in the trunk before she sat on Fuuka's lap, Kallen immediately stepped on the pedal and they returned to base as soon as they can.

"You're really reckless, Ryan-kun…You're injured and you still volunteer to be a rear guard" Mei commented.

"…Someone had to do this job, I won't leave you behind by yourself…Besides, you held something back, I could figure out as much just from your conversation with Fuuka" Ryan said while smirking.

"Fufufufufu, you're not wrong" Mei giggled then said to Ryan.

Mei and Ryan stand back to back with each other, Mei had her katana drawn out while Ryan had his G46 aimed at the incoming zombies. Both were tired, both were fed up and especially both were pissed and they need some serious release. The sentient zombies appeared on top of the buildings and several Knights materialized behind the zombie hordes, the heat rating just went from three to eight.

"Looks like we just got more company" Ryan said when he saw the knights.

"Yes…Ryan-kun…if I show you what I'm hiding and capable of…I'm not sure you will see me as a human anymore…Despite knowing that, would you still be a friend to me?" Mei asked Ryan as final confirmation.

"…I don't care what you are. I don't care about that, power, no matter what form it take is simply power…How you use it will determine its affiliation...Even if it's the power of Honkai…So, I don't really care. To me, you will always be the same Mei that's kind, a great cook, gentle and has a sweet smile that I knew these past few weeks" Ryan said while smiling.

"…Ufufufufufufu, ah your words are so sweet, Ryan-kun…then, I have no more concern to hold myself back! These scums will pay!" Mei said while she grinned maliciously.

Mei closed her eyes and when she reopened them it turned from dark violet into lighter shade of purple, a black skull with purple ornament appeared on her left side of the head. Mei's katana turned into a different form where it's a black blade with purple electricity running around it, several black piece of carapace with horns then appeared on her shoulders, knees and heels. Then, Mei sported pair of pure Honkai energy wings behind her back…Her transformation as The Third Herrscher was complete, The Lightning Empress.

Mei flapped her wings once and the shockwaves sent the zombies in front of her flying to the burned town center, she produced electricity on her blade before she swung it toward the archers on top of the rooftop which all disintegrated when hit by the purple lightning. She landed on the ground as she coyly looked at Ryan who stared at her in astonishment, he was speechless at the sight in front of him.

"I see I haven't lost my edge" Mei said while smiling.

"Whoa…so you're the rumored Third Herrscher that run amok during the invasion…Hahahahaha, this is amusing! To think we just missed each other at that time!" Ryan said while grinning.

"I've shown my card, Ryan-kun…Time to show yours!" Mei said while smiling menacingly.

"…I guess that would only be fair, let's keep this just between you, me and several people!" Ryan said before he closed his eyes.

Burst of Honkai energy suddenly gathered around Ryan, the energy then condensed into Ryan's humanoid outline and engulfed him completely in purple glow. The glow dissipated, Ryan's skin turned white as Honkai carapace grew as his skin, cracks formed on several joint parts of his limbs which glowed purple, extra set of carapace grew on his shoulder, torso, crotch and limbs which resembled armor pieces. Ryan's hair turned into blood red then he opened his eyes, it was colored jet black with purple irises.

Ryan realized he still carried his rifle, he just simply tossed it aside and he created a purple energy orb on his right hand which then materialized into a longsword, it was a white straight double edged blade with purple hand guard and black handle. Ryan grinned as he swung the sword once and created a purple sonic shockwave which burned several zombies in front of him, he finally revealed his trump card that he strived to hide all this time...The Honkaification, Valhalla's Champion. Ryan laughed hard, but his voice sounded deeper, feral and as if two people spoke at once. Both him and an unknown female voice.

"What an interesting form! You looked absolutely dashing…I suppose now we could begin our dance?" Mei coyly asked.

"Hahahahahaha…Oh yes my dear, time to show these lowlifes on what we could do!" Ryan answered while grinning.

Mei took off from the ground while Ryan prepared his stance, the zombies and other creatures started charging at Ryan. Mei gathered electricity in both of her hands while Ryan gathered Honkai energy on his left fist, just as Mei released her thunder Ryan jumped and slammed his fist to the ground. Massive energy burst followed by lightning dances immediately produced an earthquake followed by deafening thunder, the ground shook while the sky was lighted for fraction of second.

Back on the base, Gin was still on high alert when he felt a tremor and saw several flash of lightning came from the town downhill. He squinted his eyes when he felt a strong wind blew past him and he had to grabbed the wall for support, when the wind dissipated he stared back into the town.

"…Oh, kami...kare ga matta henshin ka? Ano yaro!" That was all Gin said.

* * *

 **Weapons Trivia**

 **Altair's Blade Sniper Rifle (ABS Rifle): One of the few Anti-Honkai Sniper Rifle available for mass production, only suited to be used by a Valkyrie or augmented humans. The rifle used a specialized 20mm Honkai Eliminator Bullet with capacity of five rounds per magazine, the recoil of the gun was so powerful it could dislocated a normal human's shoulder. The rifle used digital hybrid scope where it could zoom in as far as two and a half kilometers, it also equipped with Honkai energy scanner for precise shot at the beast's core. Rumor that's been around The Valkyries was the rifle was somehow able to 'guide' its user telepathically to hit the target, this rumor was dismissed by the production company for being an 'overzealous' description of the gun's incredible field performance.**

 **Ceres Armory Production Model 21 (CAPM21): This rifle was known for its fifteen 7.62mm round capacity, almost perfect accuracy and for being lightweight. This Designated Marksman Rifle was the result of First Honkai Impact skirmishes where the regular squad's marksman standard issue DMR lack the punching power and the accuracy as well for being quite heavy, the rifle was created to mitigated those problem on mind and it had delivered strong results for the past two decades. However, the gun required regular maintenance otherwise its prone to jamming. Despite that shortcoming, it doesn't stopped it from being the gun most marksman would carry into combat situations.**

 **Keris Model 10 (KM10): A bit larger than a standard SMG where it could be categorized as carbine, this SMG utilized cylinder magazine with capacity of seventy 9mm bullets. Taking the example of Bizon SMG feeding mechanism, the weapon was produced after First Honkai Impact left several platoon of special operation unit died when facing sentient zombies. Investigation revealed that most of them ran out of bullets as their primary cause of death, thus the reason why most of the SMG in the last decade possessed large magazine capacity. Keris Model 10 was produced to be cheap, reliable and easy to manufacture hence the reason why this weapon saw action in every part of the globe.**

 **Rap God 33 Light Machine Gun (RG33 LMG): The light machine gun that could emptied its entire box magazine of two hundred 5.56mm bullets in ten seconds, this single barreled LMG was the bane for zombie horde due to its absurd rate of fire and was often scorned by recruits for its ridiculous ammo consumption. It was often dubbed as lighter and single barreled version of the Gatling Gun, this weapon was often seen in the hands of veteran fighters due to in order to wield this weapon effectively then they had to master the trigger control of the gun. The weapon was issued to United Nations Armed Forces 'Enforcer' Unit where their standard armament were this gun coupled with ammo belt that connected to ammo backpacks which could fit thousands of bullets.**

 **Saratoga Armament 2 Machine Gun Turret (SA2 MGT): Definition of 'America, fuck yeah!' converted into a single weapon, this heavy machine gun turret possessed astounding destructive capabilities and high rate of fire for a single barreled machine gun. Chambered with .50 caliber anti-materiel bullets, this weapon was cumbersome and it's recoil was unforgiving if fired without its tripod being deployed. However, some Valkyries and few Vikings used this weapon as a handheld machine gun in several occasion where they were desperate enough to kill their targets to forgo how unwieldy the weapon was in the absence of effective tool to kill their opponents.**

* * *

 **Preview for the next chapter (One last effort)**

" **Ouch, we went and did it…How are we going to explain to them about this?"**

" **Wait, hold on. We don't want to get fooled for the second time"**

"… **Glad it just got worse, because I really need reality check right now!"**

" **Kallen…I got so much regret, what I wouldn't give to make things right"**

" **Nope, either we get out of here or we all die! The choice is that simple but the weight of that decision, they're like freaking mountains!"**

"… **Ryan, some of them need organ transplant…they won't survive this next night, we have to get out"**

" **Down that fucking jet! I don't care how you do it!"**

" **This is Task Force Terra of Schicksal's Far Eastern Division. Mayday, mayday, mayday…we won't last much longer, to anyone who can hear me…I don't care who, we need help! We got so many wounded people and they're close to death!"**

" **Alright…I'm about to do something stupid, you can yell at me as much as you want when it works, alright?"**

"… **It seems, that's our only way out…this is the true definition of sink or swim"**

* * *

 **Status update**

 **Achievement unlocked: Breaking point**

 **Achievement unlocked: The Champion descend to Midgard**

 **Achievement unlocked: Return of The Lightning Empress**


	9. One last effort

**Don't worry! I'm not dead yet! It's just I've been assigned to temporarily work on a remote village for my college as a graduation term, for forty days until mid-August…what a horse shit. That's the main reason on why this chapter was super late, a bit shorter and the next one would probably will also be late because of the amount of free time I have during this assignment is almost non-existent…next chapter would probably release on mid-August, but I'm not sure yet.**

 **Despite that, I would like to say my thanks for those who reviewed, favorite and followed this story. I'm sorry about the delays, I'll try to make it up next month once I'm free from this hellish assignment. With that being said, how do you like the cover for this story? Be sure to let me know on whether should I changed it to Ryan himself or not…So uh, I'm sure fellow man of culture could recognized on where did I made the models from…Credits belong to their respective owner, hahaha...And uh...The next chapter, will officially turn this story into M rating.**

 **That's all for now, do enjoy this continuation of the previous chapter...**

* * *

Both Mei and Ryan dispersed from their position and started a massive killing spree, none shall stand and live to tell the tale with how unstoppable the two of them became. Both wield their swords with one clear purpose, to kill off as many as they could within short amount of time. Jumping around the area in unnatural speed and precision even by Valkyries standards, both were moving as fast as they could and killed anything that's not a human in the way.

Ryan drove his longsword straight into a knight's core which immediately disintegrated it, a lance struck his back but it was stopped with Ryan's carapace armored torso which even snapped the lance into two. Ryan took the sword out and swung it backwards which split the knight into two. Two reapers closed in on Ryan from two sides, all Ryan did next was to duck and sent a 360 degrees leg swipe that got the zombies lost their footing before Ryan swiftly sliced them into two with his sword and ran off to his next target.

Mei blitzed through hordes of zombies under a second and left trails of electricity and destruction behind her, every zombies behind her caught fire. Mei stopped herself, she came face to face with several flyers that flew toward her from above while shooting their energy bolts and the bolts impacted the location where Mei was on. That only tickled her though as she laughed and dashed for the skies with blazing katana on her hands, she waltzed through the flyers with barrage of quick swipes which resulted the flyers being sliced apart.

Mei swooped down from the sky and she successfully sliced two archers apart with single stroke of her katana, she shot lightning from her blade to a nearby Knight. The creature shook heavily before Mei dashed forward in unreal speed and sliced apart the creature into two while destroying the core at the same time, she noticed that a Chariot was approaching from behind and prepared to mash her to the ground before it was outright thrown off with a hole on its face.

Ryan just slammed his fist directly to that Chariot, he grinned as he fell down and landed on an archer. Its head was crushed when Ryan landed on it, he grabbed his longsword and performed a 360 degrees overhead slash that decapitates the other zombies in immediate vicinity. He was about to charge another sonic wave projectile with his blade when the area was struck by relentless thunderstorm, Mei was in the sky and directly summoned the thunder from the black clouds in the sky that also currently eliminated majority of the zombies. Mei landed on the ground gracefully, she walked toward Ryan who just killed the last Reaper in the area by thrusting his longsword straight to its chest.

"I took down five hundreds of them" Mei said while she walked.

"I don't remember this being a competition, darling" Ryan responded while smiling.

"No, but it's still fun to compare. How many did you got?" Mei asked while smiling.

"Around three hundred fifty…I haven't gotten used to this form, I still don't even know its full potential" Ryan said while shrugging.

"It's the same for me at first, you only need to get used to it" Mei said while she stood in front of him.

Clenching his left fist and releasing it again, Ryan stared at his left hand that was covered in Honkai Carapace. It was tough, white and his joint parts were glowing purple. Mei noticed that another beast spawned behind Ryan and she immediately went to work, Ryan was about to follow suit before he felt something. It was foreign sensation, as if his heart and mind was joined by another. He blinked but what he saw wasn't Mei's delightfully shaped ass in front of him but a blank white space, disappointment was an understatement to him…Ryan knew that something was off with this and he had a suspicion on what's going on right now.

"…Even during a fight like that, you can't help yourself but to stare at the girl's bottom" An unknown girl voice said.

"…What can I say? It is nicely shaped" Ryan answered cheekily.

"Fufufufufu! You're honest with your desires!" The voice said after giggling.

"Yeah I'm a healthy young boy, I got hormones as excuses…By the way, could I at least see your face? It isn't comforting to talk with someone without knowing how they look" Ryan said.

"…Well, fine…I guess I could do that" The voice said.

Someone suddenly appeared in front of Ryan after he blinked and that made him jerked his body back a little, he then try to comprehend on who he saw in front of him. The figure was a woman, a bit shorter than him, with long blonde hair, gentle amethyst eyes and holy hell she could pass as a model in a heartbeat with how beautiful she looked. She wore blue one piece dress, had one hell of a figure where everything fit in just right in the right places. If it wasn't for the confusing situation he's in, Ryan would surely popped a boner.

"You like how I look?" The girl said while she leaned forward a bit.

"Hell yeah I am" Ryan eyes never left her chest region.

"How's it compared to The Third Herrscher's?" The girl coyly asked.

"Now I can't just analyze by simple observation, I need more data" Ryan said with serious expression.

"Nice try, I won't let someone touch me so casually!" The girl said then stuck her tongue out.

"Thought so…Now, mind telling me on what's going on here?" Ryan asked the girl.

"I though you already had a suspicion?" The girl asked with raised eyebrows.

…Did she just read his mind? Or was his face was that easy to read? No matter what's happening now, he need to figure out a way to solve this. He still had a battle to fight, there's no way he would left Mei to fend for herself in the middle of red zone…Ryan figured that he had no other choice but to extract info from whoever this girl was.

"Even more now that it seems you could read my mind…Are you the one behind the power that I currently wield?" Ryan asked the girl.

"Essentially you're not wrong" The girl answered in cheeky tone.

"…You're that creature I saw two years ago?" Ryan pressed on with his question.

"Should I answer that?" The girl answered in the same cheeky tone.

"…Ha? Hey! I need answers, lady!" Ryan said, a bit frustrated.

"Don't worry I'm just teasing you for a bit! Ask the right questions, then maybe you'll find the answer!" The girl said while winking.

Seriously, he didn't have the time for this nonsense! But it was a chance given to him somehow, he also needed to know more about the power that he had…Ryan looked at the girl once more, she was smiling and stood in front of him. Ryan couldn't even tell that the almost perfect girl in front of him was not a human, she looked just exactly like one…Yet what kind of human could do this then? She's really something else.

"Urgh, fine, I'll play your little game…What are you?" Ryan asked the girl.

"Hmmm…I'm what you called a 'Deity', is that the right term? Yeah perhaps, simply put I'm not a human" The girl said while tapping her chin.

"That's obvious…Are you…inside of me? Like, right now?" Ryan asked further.

"No, I'm not. We are linked together by a technique called 'Soul Bridge'. It also enable us to have conversation like this, privately" The girl explained.

Soul Bridge? That's also the first time Ryan ever heard of that technique, granted he was never to be the one interested in supernatural stuff until shit hit the fan two years ago. Despite his secret late night research into ancient texts, supernatural rumors and even enthusiast groups, he had never even once heard about this technique…Though, he did had an idea on what it was.

"I see…But, what's the source of the power I currently wield then?" Ryan muttered his thought.

"Like I said before, you're not wrong about me being your source of power, Ryan. But I did not live inside of you, we're just connected…our soul that is" …That confirmed his suspicion.

"So just by being connected, I could transform into that being? Where are you right now?" Ryan asked the girl.

"Somewhere on Soukai, I'm laying low for a bit" The girl said absentmindedly.

"…Wait, you're nearby this whole time?!" Ryan was surprised, definitely didn't expect that one!

"Well yes! I won't stray far from someone I've chosen as my destined one!" The girl said as if it was something obvious.

"Wait, what?!" Ryan stepped back a bit.

One bomb after another! But at least this one didn't literally blown up in his face like it was few hours ago. What was the meaning of this? She's nearby this whole time on Soukai, but why she never contacted him outside this bullshit technique!?

"…So, any reason on why you appeared just now?" Ryan asked her.

"Dramatic revelations of course! Isn't that how it supposed to work in anime and manga? Well, it's good that you're not close to death when it happens but I'm sure you got my point!" The girl said while shrugging and smirking.

…After five seconds of disbelief, Ryan found the willpower to continue on asking the girl without facepalming in the process. Seriously, that must be a joke reason...or was it? Nah, there's no way that's the real reason! This was why Ryan like straight forward girls more, he didn't have to play mind games with them and communication could be done quite easily…

"…Hah…Alright lady, what do you mean by a destined one?" Ryan asked after sighing.

"I could grant someone the ability to use my power to those that I've chosen, in exchange for a binding contract…Do you remember when I stared at you two years ago?" The girl asked him.

"All I remember is you trying to blind me with that bright light, seriously that temporarily did for six hours!" Ryan said with half closed eyes.

"Hehehe, sorry about that!" The girl stuck her tongue out.

"And what's this about binding contract?! I don't even remember giving my consent for it!?" Ryan asked in outrage.

"Again, I'm sorry about that…I was desperate you see, you're the only one who remains on that location when everybody else ran" The girl didn't looked apologetic though…

Just now he realized the full sentence of the girl, he was late to respond to the word 'Binding Contract'. Holy shit! He unknowingly entered a shady ritual that bound his soul with her without knowing any terms of it and he had done that two years ago? My god, Ryan couldn't believe on what he had done sometimes. The justification for this though, he didn't knew a single thing about that! He remained on that location because he was too exhausted and don't even had the strength for long range sprint! That was the real reason on why he was bestowed on this power? Mere pure coincidence?!

"Desperate? Desperate of what?" Ryan asked in confusion.

"I was very weak at that time, if I don't quickly secure a support then I might disappear completely from this universe…But you was still there, my instinct screamed at me to 'just do it!' and then things happened" The girl answered almost immediately.

"That raise even more questions! What made you so weak? How does binding with me save your life?" Ryan asked relentlessly.

What the fuck!? That's what could summarized Ryan's entire thoughts right now. This girl needed his support to survive but all she's been doing was talking in riddles toward her lifeline? That won't do, he would need a seriously good reason on why should he allow an unknown entity binding his soul, it was beneficial but man, this shit was so fucking confusing and terrifying!

"Hmm, it'll be better if I explained it to you personally after you get back here. For now, I just want you to know about this fact…I've tried to contact you several times in the past whenever you transformed but only just now I could made a connection, what could be the cause?" The girl asked absentmindedly.

"Beats me! You still haven't even give me your name-" Ryan raised his voice.

"Oops! Gotta go now! Maybe you should dodge that!" The girl said.

"Huh?" Ryan cocked his eyebrows.

BUAK!

CRASH!

…Ryan blinked and found that he was on the floor of inside an abandoned house, his body were quite sore and then he looked ahead to saw a gaping hole on the ceiling…His eyes went half opened when he realized on what did that mysterious girl means, she took his consciousness to wherever the fuck that was and while remain idle he got blown off by nearby Honkai creature. Ryan got up from the floor and jumped through the hole on the ceiling, he saw on what the small town had become after a fierce battle. Eighty five percent of the buildings were rubble now, some that still stood didn't went unscathed either as all at least had one big hole on it.

"There you are!" Mei said from above.

Mei landed beside him and her wings disappeared, her armor pieces and her hair ornament disappeared when she casually walked toward Ryan's right side and looked on the scenery in front of him. Ryan himself focused all of his Honkai energy toward his hands before he spotted a group of sentient zombies on nearby building, Ryan then put both hands forth and fired a focused red energy beam which hit the ground and caused a big explosion. That created a crater and the zombies that were there disappeared without a trace, at the same time Ryan's Honkai skin disintegrated and he was back as a normal human with normal features in matter of three seconds.

"Um…we did this?" Mei asked Ryan.

"Now I wonder" Ryan answered while scratching his head.

"…We went overboard" Mei said while smiling uneasily.

"…I think it was you who went overboard" Ryan said while staring at Mei.

"Don't give me that, what was that beam strike just now then?" Mei stared back at Ryan.

"Good point, that's how I turned back to a normal human" Ryan explained to Mei.

"…Ouch, we went and did it…How we are going to tell them about this?" Mei facepalmed.

"We better comes up with an idea soon because there's no way in hell I'm going to tell the truth, it would only do more harm than good" Ryan said as he seated himself on the roof.

"I agree…But in my case, some already knew about it…It's not like my abilities were secret anymore" Mei said to Ryan.

Fuuka, Bronya and even Kallen seemed to be aware regarding Mei's true power as they indicated when Mei told them that she would stay behind, it would also seemed that Fuuka knew about his ability…She must've accessed his files, did Theresa gave her permission to do that? Must be, there's no way she would access a restricted file like his that even Bronya didn't know about…right?

"Right…So am I" Ryan muttered.

"Oh yes, I saw a dock not too far from here to the west…Do you think we should check it out?" Mei said to Ryan.

"A dock huh…well, it's worth the shot…Right now, we need all methods we could think off to escape" Ryan said as he stood up.

"Let's go then" Mei said as she also stood up.

"Wait, we better let them know that we're still alive" Ryan said to Mei.

.

"This is Task Force Terra of Schicksal Far Eastern Division. Mayday, mayday, mayday…we won't last much longer, to anyone who can hear me…I don't care who, we need help! We got so many wounded people and they're close to death! Please, help us!" The SOS message was set to repeat on every radio broadcast around the island.

BANK!

"That fucker!" Kiana shouted.

Kiana slammed her fist to the metal desk on the command center and made a clear dent on its surface, the occupants of the command center jerked a bit when she did that. Kallen lowered her head with frowning lips, she didn't wanted to be the one to say on why did they returned without Mei and Ryan with them.

"Why didn't you stop him, Kallen!?" Kiana asked Kallen.

"…You think I didn't try? That guy is quite stubborn! I know he won't yield even when I grabbed his left arm! Fuuka, you seems awfully confident of his ability" Kallen said.

"He know how to handle himself, Kallen. Especially now that he has two arms, Mei also with him so we got nothing to fear" Fuuka calmly replied.

"…Well, if you say so…I'm still worried nevertheless" Kallen said as she gripped her left arm.

The operation door center opened and Gin went inside without his helmet, he was greeted by the sight of entire occupants being tired and desperate. Kiana stood still in front of the damaged metal table, Kallen stood in front of her looking tired and frowning, Fuuka stood beside Kallen with tired face, Michael leaned on his seat while sighing in melancholy and Benio was asleep on the chair in the corner of the room.

"Hey, what took you so long?" Kallen asked Gin.

"Just making sure that our perimeter is safe, I have to be thorough…How's the other lieutenants?" Gin asked Kallen.

"Being treated right now, thankfully none of them suffered life threatening injuries…They should be back on their feet in few hours according to Sakura" Kallen said to Gin.

"I see" Gin simply said.

Gin walked toward the table and he cocked his eyebrows at the sight of an anomaly on the center of the table, somehow he knew it was Kiana who was responsible for it. The accused girl sat on a chair beside her with a frown while she stared at the console in front of Michael, they were waiting for any kind of sign that Mei and Ryan survived the onslaught. Fuuka looked at Gin who also looked at her, he sent her a questioning gaze.

"…Did you see anything interesting back on your way here?" Fuuka asked Gin.

"I didn't see shit, Fuuka-san…Kiana-san?" Gin asked Kiana.

"…What?" Kiana answered.

"Ryan will be fine, you don't have to worry too much" Gin said to Kiana.

Kiana gritted her teeth, why does only Kallen and her who worried so much about him? A normal human stranded on red zone for the second time on his life and she's not even sure that he could made it out this time! He definitely had the skills but even Kiana believed he survived the first one because of a miracle! Kiana had seen firsthand on what Mei could do, she could've protected Ryan but there's always a chance…

"What makes you say that? Why does everybody have so much confidence in him!? Don't you worried too!? He's just a normal guy in the middle of dead zone! Mei-senpai would be fine because she's a Valkyrie!" Kiana said to Gin.

"…I already saw what he's capable of, Kiana-san. What a normal human with a missing arm could do to raise hell, you shouldn't undervalue him!" Gin said to Kiana.

"You misunderstand because I didn't! I said this because he's someone important to me! He's being reckless and I don't approve of it in any kind!" Kiana raised her voice.

Gin was about to retort before he realized on what Kiana just said out loud, someone important to her? What's going on between her and Ryan? Heck, he never knew that both of them were close? Well, Gin had to agree that Ryan being reckless with him staying behind and even transformed into his Honkai form…The last time that happened, they were surrounded by Schicksal and UNAF vanguards. That's the first time ever Gin felt almost wetting his pants because the amount of guns pointed at him was absurd, one trigger pull and there might be nothing left of him…Gin was about to reply when the entire room heard a static radio noise.

"…Is this on? Well, it's better over nothing…Hey! This is 01, does anybody read me? I wasn't sure this radio even works, that hit could've banged the internal components" It was Ryan himself.

"…YOU LITTLE PIECE OF SHIT!" Kiana shouted so hard that she woke Benio up.

"Whoa! Damnit Kiana! My left ear! Don't shout on the radio like that!" Ryan complained on the other side.

"You will receive more than shouting by the time I see you, prepare yourself! Can't you be anymore reckless than staying behind on a red zone without support!? Mei-senpai is another deal, but what about you!? Do you feel you could tackle them after surviving once!? Come on! I need more reason to justify me beating you up later! I promise you that!" Kiana ranted with anger flaring in her eyes.

Gin chuckled in relief when he heard Ryan's voice, Fuuka and Kallen smiled as both had their shoulders slumped after their stress alleviated from their bodies. Michael pumped his fist as he started working on clearing some background noises coming from the radio transmission, Benio smiled in relief while Kiana was seething with anger as she stood behind Michael. As much as Gin want to see Ryan get chewed on by Kiana, the priority was to hear on what was happening out there.

"Now now, Kiana-san. We should hear on what he has to say first, right?" Gin said to Kiana.

"…Right…Hah, I'm kind of drained now" Kiana said after she calmed down.

"Here, take a seat" Benio guided Kiana to her previous seat.

"She's so worried about you that when she heard you're fine all of the tension on her immediately evaporated!" Gin said to Ryan.

"Good lord, she won't heal if she kept doing that" Ryan said to Gin.

"And whose fault do you think that was!?" Kiana said from her seat.

"Urgh, right…Is Kallen there too?" Ryan asked them.

"You're asking me?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Hey Kallen, I'm still alive. Don't combust like Kiana did alright? We only need one pissed off Kaslana, hahahaha!" Ryan said cheekily.

Gin took a glance toward Kallen who was smiling sweetly, she felt genuinely relieved to hear his voice once again. The fact he kept his promise alone was more than enough for her, she's not the type to explode like Kiana did so she settled just by smiling instead…Gin squinted his eyes at this, did Ryan just successfully made two Kaslana girls on their year to get attached to him? What kind of voodoo magic did he use? For real!

"…Don't worry, I'm pretty relieved just by hearing your voice alone" Kallen said in soft tone.

"Well, hate to interrupt but is the reunion done? We kind of need to ask on where the hell are you?" Gin hate to interrupt, but mission comes first.

"Yeah, I guess so…Right now, Mei and I were in the beach area of the town" Ryan said to Gin.

"In a romantic night date? Aww man, the weather's bad and that's not the first place I would pick for a first date!" Gin said cheekily.

"Ha! You're a bad joker as always 02…But for real though, we caught a glimpse of a dock on the town being obstructed by some tall buildings. We're heading there now, resistance is pretty light" Ryan further explained.

"I see" Gin simply replied.

"…How the fuck did you two made it all the way there without fighting?" Michael didn't, as he was curious.

"Who said we didn't? My rifle is out of ammo and Mei is quite exhausted, the reason she hadn't speak now is because she had to scour the docks" Ryan said to Michael.

"…Ryan-kun, I spotted something! It's a ship!" Mei's voice could be heard on the radio.

All heads on the operation center turned toward Michael's desk and all of them thought only one thing…'did we really forgot about the sea route completely?!' as they realized that they should've went to the schematics to look for a dock when that bomb was dropped, escape by sea was not impossible to do but tiredness may affected their state of logic process and mental strength. Nevertheless, it's a great news that there's a ship remaining on the deserted dock and now they had the third chance to attempt escaping…You know what they used to say, third time is the charm!

"Nice find Mei!" Ryan said to Mei.

"A ship!? Floating and undamaged ship!?" Michael asked Ryan.

"Yeah…I've got a look at it, seems to be a cargo ship from early 1990's model…Worth the shot?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Worth the fucking shot! Someone get Namira-san up here!" Gin immediately said.

"On it!" Benio responded.

Benio immediately bolted out from the operation center to find Namira who was resting on the command center first floor, she was asleep until Benio shook her up. Benio explained to her on what was happening while they made their way to the operation center, Namira immediately approached Michael's desk to talk with Ryan.

"I'm here! Good to hear you and Mei still alive and kicking, 01!" Namira said while smiling.

"Thanks! I assume you already heard of what happened?" Ryan asked Namira.

"I've did, how is it? Can we use it to escape?" Namira asked Ryan.

"The ship is dormant with its engine's off…We're going to investigate the inside…Prepare to evacuate the base, head straight to the port in the coordinates that I've sent. Use everything, tanks, material trucks or even the jeeps. We'll pull all the stops, all or nothing" Ryan said to Namira.

"…Are you sure this won't end like last time, 01? I have to ask" Namira asked Ryan.

"Nope, either we get out of here or we all die! The choice is that simple but the weight of that decision, they're like freaking mountains! Both of us are in charge of our comrades, it's up to us to make the decision and our priority is to get everyone out alive…We'll do it, or we'll die trying. Don't you agree?" Ryan asked Namira.

The engine's off but at least there's a sliver of hope, Mei and Ryan would have to investigate first and hopefully the ship would be sail worthy. Namira thought on the people she saw on the first floor, majority of them were writhing in pain and even those that still healthy were demoralized…This would be their last gamble, a way out of their own. Because if this also fails, then they would have no choice but to wait for Schicksal to send a rescue which won't be coming by anytime soon by the looks of it.

"…I agree with you, this would be our one last effort to escape this island on our own. As soon as you give a green light, we will immediately make our way toward you" Namira said with determined gaze.

"Good, wait a bit while we enter the ship. 01 out!" Ryan said and disconnected the transmission.

"You heard him! Get ready to move! Pack up all essentials stuffs and prioritize the wounded!" Namira shouted orders.

Kallen, Fuuka, Benio and Namira herself made their way out of the room as soon as they could, leaving only Michael and Gin on the operation center. Gin looked outside through the window, nothing but darkness. Gin checked on his wristwatch and it shows 3.56 AM in the morning…He had not been asleep for how many hours now? Gin can't say, he was about to head out when he heard something coming from Michael.

"God…please let this be our true way out…" Michael murmured.

"I never knew you as someone religious, Michael" Gin said while snickering.

"I didn't but I'm desperate enough to call help from god!" Michael replied with half opened eyes.

"Gin-san! Grey-san called for you on the first floor" Benio reappeared on the operation center.

"On my way" Gin nodded his head as he exited the room.

Few kilometers away from the base, Mei and Ryan successfully entered the docks and made their way to the only ship available in the area. They opted to sneak their way around this time because they wouldn't want to further bait Honkai creatures to surround this area, it will only complicated their escape plans further. After a bit of hide and seek among the containers in the docks, both Mei and Ryan managed to made their way safely to the cargo ship.

"…It seems, that's our only way out…this is true definition of sink or swim. Did any of us even know on how to drive a ship?" Mei said to Ryan.

"No…but better die trying than wait for our demise…Let's go Mei, I'll cover your rear" Ryan said to Mei.

"Understood" Mei nodded her head.

Both Mei and Ryan entered the cargo ship that was still docked through a rear entrance, Ryan had his M1911H out and leading in the front while Mei had her katana drawn out behind him. They made their way to the bridge, the ship was surprisingly deserted and there's not a single corpses laying around in the interior or exterior of the ship that they passed on. It was completely deserted, as if people left this ship on purpose. Ryan opened the bridge's door, he then turned on the interior light and noticed that the console was dead.

"…Figures" Ryan commented.

"Could the engine be reactivated with another way?" Mei asked Ryan.

"If I know how, I would've tried it already…Really, there's no single manual book available on this ship?" Ryan said while he looked around.

"…That's not likely isn't it?" Mei asked Ryan.

"Yeah, really" Ryan simply said.

Ryan kept messing around the drawers and any storage places on the bridge, he found a lot of things but none of them would help them. It was then Ryan realized that there's no key on the bridge console, the key was needed to jumpstart the engine in the older model of transport ship like this. But he had no clue on where it could be, how the hell he would find a key in this whole freaking island? It could be held by a zombie which they killed few minutes ago, Ryan found himself scratching his head.

"Anything?" Mei asked Ryan.

"Nothing that could help…You?" Ryan asked Mei.

"A schematics for the ship, it was on the wall" Mei said while she inspected the schematics.

"…Wait, where's the captain's quarter?" Ryan asked Mei.

"Hmm? It's near here, why?" Mei asked Ryan back.

"…The key could be there, we'll need it if we're going to start the engine…You should stay here, I'll go" Ryan said to Mei.

"Alright, careful, there might be some zombies. We haven't exactly scoured the entire ship" Mei said to Ryan.

"Yeah, will do" Ryan only nodded his head.

Following the schematics and after traversing multiple corridors, Ryan finally reached the captain's room. He opened the door slowly and went in with gun drawn out in front of him. He flipped on the light switch and scoured the entire room, there he found a corpse with a bullet hole on its forehead…Badly decomposed, must've been dead for two days at least. Ryan approached a bit closer…luckily, the smell of rotten corpses didn't bother him as much. He checked the pockets of the dead person and managed to find the ship's key. He was about to head back when he spotted something, it was being held in the grip of the dead man.

Ryan took the item, it was a small leather covered journal. Since Ryan didn't have the time for reading through the content right now, he put it inside his spare pocket and proceeded to drag the rotting corpse outside to the port side. Then, he threw the corpse straight down toward the sea…That should get rid of the smell inside the ship. Ryan then ran back toward the bridge, he immediately inserted the key to its keyhole and twisted it. The ship shook a bit but the console and the engine as well, went online in few seconds.

"…We did it?" Mei asked Ryan.

"…We fucking did, we could get out of here Mei!" Ryan said to Mei.

"Yes!" Mei said happily.

Mei was so ecstatic that she unconsciously hugged Ryan on the spot and vice versa, they were so happy to finally found a way out…Ten seconds later, both of them went wide eyed and pull away from each other with noticeable blush decorated their cheeks. Mei was holding her cheeks while Ryan looked at anywhere but her, yeah, they really let the heat of the moment got to them.

"Let's…just call for them, shall we?" Mei said to Ryan without looking at him.

"…Let's check this ship's condition first" Ryan said to Mei.

Ryan went to the captain's control panel, he went and checked on everything…This ship still used fossil fuel and there's around eighty percent remaining on the tank, estimation of the computer it should be able to reach around eight hundred kilometers. It was more than enough to get to Soukai, Ryan checked the GPS system and saw that it was active…That did proved Michael's theory on precision signal jamming.

"Alright, we should be good to go…01 here, we are all set…green light on evac" Ryan said on the radio.

"Green light on evac. Boys! Punch em through!" Namira said on the radio.

Mei heard something and she proceed to go outside and she gasped, Ryan perked his head and followed her out. What he saw successfully made him doubted of their chance on getting out of here as the remaining zombies around the docks were attracted to the ship's engine noise, there's at least one hundred of them that made their way to the parked ship.

"…When would this end?" Mei said out loud.

"Hopefully, in few minutes…I'm about to do something stupid, you can yell at me as much as you want when it works, alright?" Ryan said to Mei.

"I was about to ask you to be careful, but it seems I would have to joined in too…Once more?" Mei asked to Ryan.

"Yeah...Once more" Ryan nodded his head.

The zombies tried to climb toward the ship through the back entrance as Mei and Ryan dropped down to the docks to fend off the undead from entering their ship, Mei with a katana drawn out while Ryan had his M1911H and a combat knife on his hands. They were reaching their limits but each of them hoped that they possessed enough strength left to fend off these remaining zombies, the others counted on them to escape.

.

On the captured base, everyone were ready on the courtyard with every vehicles loaded inside. The wounded were brought using the material trucks, the tanks hull had people on it and the jeeps were jam packed. Namira got on one of the jeep's Gatling gun, she looked back at the vehicles behind her before she raised her hands and threw it forward three times. That gave the signal that they were moving out, all vehicles immediately bolted their way out from the base.

They made their way to the town silently, not many of them were chattering around with one another. They were tired, they had to stay alert so they focused all of their energy in monitoring their surroundings…They reached the town and their mouth went agape, so much destruction around the town! Majority of them questioned whether this had always been the case in every red zone around the world? Those who were experienced knew better…This wasn't just caused by Honkai energy, this was caused by something akin to a rampaging Honkai creature and they shuddered with the conclusion they had.

"…What happened here?" A random Viking said.

"Dunno, but it was freaky as hell" A random Valkyrie said.

"…Just stay sharp everyone, we don't know what could cause this but fighting it is not an option right now" Namira said.

"Yeah, I won't want to fight whatever creature that could destroy more than half of this town overnight!" A random Viking said.

They kept advancing until they encounter group of zombies heading for the harbor alongside several flyers, all cannons immediately opened fire to clear a path to the dock. Kiana furiously manned the Gatling gun on Namira's jeep and fired the gun nonstop despite her injuries, she meticulously aimed the gun so none of the zombies could approach the convoy since they were the vanguards.

"Punch through them!" Namira said on the radio.

"Roger that! Let the big guns comes through!" Rahn replied.

A single Norn Hover Tank speeded past Namira's jeep while firing its main cannon and chain gun, The Vikings above the hull also fired their guns to help clear the way. Another tank also appeared beside it to help protect the lightly armored material trucks and the jeeps, even the tanks had to aim at the approaching flyers so the jeeps behind them could stand a chance.

"Hose those fuckers down!" Rahn said to The Vikings on his tank.

"Not that easy without a precise shot from a Brune Launcher!" A Viking commented.

A Honkai Eliminator missile flew toward a flyer above the tank and perfectly hit the core, The Viking who said that looked at Agus who were shrugging with arrogant smirk on his face. But before he could came up with some smartass retort, another group of zombies stormed the convoy through the front. Rahn realized that chain gun won't work against them fired the tank's main gun, the explosion successfully took out the entire horde.

"Too fucking close, 06!" Agus said on the radio.

"Oh shut it! We're almost there!" Rahn said to Agus.

"Race you there!" Gin suddenly said.

"Oh no you don't!" Rahn replied to Gin.

There's too many zombies and Honkai creature around the port to be considered normal, Namira squinted her eyes when she saw that the port's entrance were clogged with hundreds of zombies. She tapped Kiana's right leg, Kiana understood what Namira meant and she kept pressing the trigger toward the zombies on the entrance.

"01! The hell is going on!? We're seeing a lot of Honkai activity around the port!" Namira asked Ryan.

"I accidently sounded the horn of the ship!" Ryan said to Namira.

"Wait, for real?!" Kallen blurted out loud.

"Nah, the engine attracted a lot of attention! This older model were quite noisy! Oh fuck!" Ryan said.

They heard several gunshots that came from the radio and faintly heard coming from the port, it seemed Ryan was also fighting inside the ship. There's only several zombies remaining on the entrance, Namira pressed the acceleration pedal to the max. Those zombies in front of her was going to be an airbag testing dummy!

BRAK!

The rest of the vehicles followed Namira's lead and rammed through the rest of the zombies crowding the entrance, they immediately headed for the only ship remaining on the port. Kiana jumped down from the jeep and she quickly get to work with her USP by clearing the way as vanguards, she soon ran out of bullets and reloaded while Kallen summersault above her while firing her Colt Anacondas to any zombies in front of her. A knight materialized as Kallen landed and thrust its lance at her, Kallen ducked down and Fuuka came from her back and sent a flying kick that threw the knight to the sea.

"Bronya!" Fuuka suddenly said.

Fuuka sidestepped to the left and Bronya dashed forward with her Project Bunny with a swinging fist, the result was the zombies behind the knight being thrown off the docks. Bronya raised the shield of Project Bunny which deflected arrow barrages that came from group of archers behind the horde, while the archers reloaded Sakura dashed forward and swung her katana like she was moving in an elegant dance. The archers were sliced apart, a reaper in front of Sakura then moved in for the kill. Sakura blocked several strikes of the scythe before she back stepped and Kiana dashed forward with an extended right leg, the reaper stumbled back before Kiana emptied her entire current magazine on the reaper's head.

She huffed seeing her victim disintegrated into nothing, then she saw both Mei and Ryan who were breathing heavily in front of her. Kiana wordlessly walked toward Mei and both of them hugged each other in relief, Ryan smiled at the sight before Kiana suddenly swung her right fist at Ryan. Caught off guard, it sent him to the floor after it hit his left temple. All Kiana's anger and fear immediately dissipated upon seeing him in person, she smugly smile while staring down at Ryan.

"There, I kept my promise" Kiana said as she stared at Ryan.

"…Yeah…Ouch, you did" Ryan said while smiling.

Kiana took his hand and pulled him up, that's before she smiled and boldly hugged Ryan on the spot. As quickly as she did that, she pulled away so she could cover the others so they could evacuate the wounded safely. Gin and Kallen approached Ryan where Gin briefly bumped Ryan's right chest, a bit too hard for comfort though.

"You reckless bastard" Gin said to Ryan.

"Found out, huh?" Ryan asked Gin.

"There's no way I wouldn't…Glad to see you alive though" Gin said while smiling.

"Guess you keep your promise, Ryan" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Oh yeah, I'm more of afraid on what you will do if break it" Ryan answered while snickering.

"You don't want to know on what I will do" Kallen said while huffing.

Kallen walked toward Mei who smiled in relief and hugged Kallen and vice versa, both were glad to see each other being fine. Ryan took a glance at them both before he noticed there's five Vikings approaching from his front, he knew well on who were these five.

"Hey look here! Our playboy champion of the academy is still alive!" Han commented while snickering.

"Whoa, you're right! Hooray for our chad commander!" Rahn commented while snickering.

"He won't want to miss the chance to further hit on the ladies on Soukai!" Agus commented.

"Just please don't break my jaw again, I'm not into SM play!" James commented while smiling.

"Ah tovarisch, I guess you're out of alcohol and need of refill because of your urge to return home were strong!" Igor said with a rare smile on his face.

"…I see you assholes still has energy to run your mouths!" Ryan commented back while smiling.

The Viking Lieutenants each either bumped his shoulder or outright smacked him in the back, hard. Ryan smiled knowing that his lieutenants did worried about his condition, what good friends he had. The Valkyries top guns hugged and greeted Mei who had to support herself with her katana so she wouldn't fell to the floor, Sakura and Kallen both grabbed her arms as they guided her inside the ship. Namira approached Ryan with her spear on her right hand, she nodded in sense of respect while Ryan did vice versa.

"This is it" Namira said.

"Yeah…By the way, could you drive a ship?" Ryan asked Namira.

"I'll try not to crash, heard this one is a bit troublemaker to handle" Namira said as she walked inside.

"…Out of the frying pan into the fire" Ryan muttered out loud.

Essential supplies loaded, everyone on board, Namira quickly set the engine to maximum power as they left the dock area with kisses and hugs to the local inhabitants in the form of middle fingers, bullet hails, rockets and laser beam as literal 'fuck you!' parting gift to the local populace. What an eventful two night stay on the island among the local inhabitants, but Task Force Terra would surely gave bad ratings for the island tourism business. Guest won't appreciate surprise fireworks in close proximity, frequent bad weather, false advertisement, harassment on the door and lack of proper medical facilities! No life insurance too!

.

They've been on the sea for hours already, the ship was making its way to Soukai with its fastest speed. So far, they haven't encounter anybody else within the vast blue sea. It's almost noon, everybody were either resting or keeping watch as sentry. Kiana and Kallen leaned on the railing in front area of the ship, both had done with their shift and they were currently resting.

"Kallen, I got so much regret…what wouldn't I do to make things right?" Kiana said to Kallen.

"Did you?" Kallen asked Kiana.

"I left to go on a mission thinking I would meet them again, mom and dad…now that we are here, in the middle of the sea, on a defenseless cargo ship…Now, I really get the true sense of few things" Kiana said somberly.

Being sentimental wasn't Kiana's strong points, but she really felt being one after all the event that happened for the last two days. Kallen looked at Kiana who was leaning on the guard railing with down casted eyes, it seems she had a lot in mind and being like this was really out of character for Kiana. Kallen then looked back on the sea and thankfully and regretfully, no enemy in sight yet no potential allies either.

"I could still talk, play or even spend time with my parents…I realized that, lately I have been distancing myself from them…I came to think, what would mom and dad think if they heard their daughter is killed just before she turned eighteen…I even thought about all of us, how long we'll be spending our time on the sea heading toward the nearest civilization? It been on my head ever since we left..." Kiana said somberly.

"This isn't like you, Kiana…normally you wouldn't really care about this problem, you'll stare ahead into the future with positive gaze, you're being uncharacteristically quiet when you're usually loud and talkative…Guess, it's been hard on everyone that none of us acting normally" Kallen commented.

"…You're basically the same, Kallen. What do you mean?" Kiana cocked her eyebrows as she asked.

Well Kiana didn't noticed on how Kallen was slowly breaking apart with each of their escape attempt being failed, she was disheartened when the dropship exploded but she put on strong front and distracted herself by helping the others. She was close to break down on the spot when a JDAM Bomb was dropped on them, one failure after another. She was so hopeful on the sea escape route and they did it, that's what renewed her resolve to carry on.

"Are you kidding me? I was so close to break down if Mei and Ryan didn't found this cargo ship out of pure chances, those two really saved our lives…We are not out of this problem yet, but with this we at least pulled together for a last effort…The wounded, I hope they could survive until we get help but…the chances are slim" Kallen said to Kiana.

"Is that so…I think I won't be able to go on a mission anytime soon after this" Kiana said then sighed.

"Yeah, those who could must have steely nerves and titanium heart" Kallen nodded her head.

Those who could execute a mission even after all this without a rest were either insane or a battle maniac, the mental burden they've got from this single failed operation was enough to warrant few days of rest. Kiana and Kallen were sure that Theresa won't be so heartless as to send them to another mission tomorrow, please let them rest and have fun tomorrow…maybe cancel school too in the process, they're not ready for homework.

"…Hey you two, everything alright?" Sakura said from behind.

"Hey Sakura…so far, we haven't see anything worth mentioning…It was blue, as far as the eyes could see" Kallen said to Sakura.

"You're on break?" Kiana glanced at Sakura.

"Yes…I've did my best…It's only matter of time and fate left" Sakura said as she joined them.

Sakura had been treating the wounded for hours with only short rest before they had to escape the base, she had been continuing the treatment ever since she got on the cargo ship until a Viking named Grey told her to rest. She's insistent that she helped but Grey assured her that he could cover for her a bit, she lacked sleep and looked like a mess. Sakura finally complied but she couldn't sleep so she opted to walk around, that's when she saw Kallen and Kiana.

"…God…I was quite lucky when I deflected the Emperor's thrown carapace at that time" Kiana said with a blue face.

"That's the most reckless thing you've did to date, Kiana…Auntie Cecilia would be mad, I guarantee it" Kallen stared at Kiana with half closed eyes.

"Urgh…I'm really looking forward to meet her but I don't want to due to the scolding I will surely get" Kiana said as she buried her face on her hands.

"Hey everyone" Mei said.

Mei approached Kiana, Kallen and Sakura in the front part of the ship, Mei looked a bit better compared when they found her and Ryan this morning when they rushed it to the ship. She had been resting for few hours and she was snacking on light meal when she saw the girls in the front part of the ship, she approached them while munching on her food. Gosh, her stomach was empty! She's all in for reducing her fat but this wasn't how she planned on doing so…on the second thought, maybe she won't go on dieting for a while. A certain someone kept checking her rear out when they were in battle before, don't think she didn't noticed that!

"Mei? You're done resting?" Sakura asked Mei.

"I was able to catch few hours of sleep, it's hard to do it comfortably when on this situation…Hah, nothing so far?" Mei asked the others.

"Nada, even the network still jammed" Kiana said.

"We're supposed to be far away from the island now…Why it was still jammed anyway?" Kallen asked Kiana.

"No one knows, not even Bronya, Benio or Michael and they're supposed to be on the genius and expert side when it comes to tech" Kiana said.

"So all of you gathered here" A male voice said from behind.

Ryan walked toward them, he still dressed with his armor but his rifle was absent. How the girls knew it was him even with fully covered face? Yeah, this one month they had been accustomed to his voice. He sounded tired, he was slouching a bit and man just now they realized that the last battle might have been a close call. His left upper arm was bandaged along with a bit of a blood on it, his torso armor plating had noticeable gap in slashing mark on it, his helmet paint job got scratch mark on it and he lost both shoulder pads.

"Hey Ryan…Fuuka and Bronya are sleeping though" Kiana said while smiling a bit.

"Figures…We've checked the GPS, we'll be on Soukai within seven hours" Ryan informed the girls.

Sakura's eyes went wide, they didn't have that long! Some of them were in dire need of organ transplant, some need proper medical care in proper medical facilities. There's only so much a first aid could do and the condition of the wounded getting worse with every hour passed, seven hours would be too late for them. Most of them would die within two and Sakura realized the inevitability of the situation. But her tired mind refused to think logically, she only wanted for her fellow wounded comrades to make it.

"…That long?! Ryan, some of them need organ transplant…They won't survive this next night, we have to get out faster!" Sakura said to Ryan.

"I know!"

The girls flinched back a bit with how harsh the tone Ryan used to answer Sakura, the girls guessed he had it rough too. All of them also speculated that Ryan hadn't slept for more than twenty four hours, which would explain on why would he who usually gentle with girls could said something in angry tone to them. Ryan jerked his head back after he realized on what he had done, he then looked down a bit.

"…Sorry, it's been hard to keep a cool head" Ryan confessed.

"Its fine…we're all close to our breaking point here, its normal" Sakura replied while smiling a bit.

"…We should hold on a bit longer, we've came so far" Mei said to everyone.

"Agreed" Ryan nodded his head.

"…This is…to anyone…Terra, can you…over!?"

All of them immediately checked their radio to made sure if they were hearing things or hallucinating, the transmission were garbled and unclear but it's a sign that maybe they were out of the jammer's area of influence.

"...Do you guys hear that?" Ryan asked everyone on the radio.

"Is it friendly?" Han said as he ran to the front part of the ship.

"Wait, hold on. We don't want to get fooled for the second time…After that last stunt on the town center, we shouldn't just trust someone so easily" Namira said to Ryan.

"You're right. But…I'm taking the chance…the wounded doesn't have long" Ryan said in even tone.

"…Alright…Let's pray that this won't end with us experiencing déjà vu" Namira said on the radio.

"…Yeah…Michael, could you clear the signal?" Ryan asked Michael.

"…Done sir, best of luck to us!" Michael said to Ryan.

"For sure…Here goes nothing…Hello, can you hear me?" Ryan said on the radio.

There's five seconds silent since that connection but it felt like they've been waiting for an eternity, all of them hoped and prayed in their heart that those who they contacted were allies. They do said 'Terra' on the transmission and that's their task force codename, sure everyone got this tinge of fear in their hearts that this could be another trap…But they need to take the chances!

"…Huh? We got a connection! This is SS Musashi of Schicksal's Battle group Bussan of Schicksal's Eight Eastern Fleet! Task Force Terra, is that you? We've been assigned to find and rescue you, do you copy, over!?" Someone said on the radio.

Kallen and Sakura took each other hands as they jumped happily, Kiana pumped her right fist, Mei smiled broadly and Ryan sighed as all tension left his body. This one might be genuine because of the complete unit identification, they actually said their unit's name instead of the fake SS Ganymede that sent a fighter to bomb them. Ryan immediately contacted SS Musashi back, this was their real chance for evacuation!

"This is 01 of Task Force Terra…we hear you SS Musashi. We are aboard a civilian cargo ship, we got wounded that needs immediate medical attention!" Ryan said to the radio.

"Good to hear you 01! We got your coordinates and our dropship is on the way…We have been circling for hours around the coordinates of your AO, there's some powerful jammer with extreme range in there so locating you is like finding needle in a haystack…We also couldn't go in blind because of that anti air defenses on that independent faction base, focused fire of those could even bring down a frigate" The operator said on the radio.

"Understood…but even so, we are glad that we could hear some friendlies. There's unknown faction that have been bugging us, be ready for the unexpected…01 out" Ryan said on the radio.

Everyone were ecstatic, finally this nightmare would be truly over! Now it made sense, Schicksal do sent an evacuation team but they couldn't get close to the island without getting chewed to pieces by the anti-air defenses. No communication meant that friendly fire would be unavoidable even if the base was within the task force influence or when the ship dare an assault, they had to wait for a bit until they somehow get out of the jamming area of influence.

A huge sound of water surface breaking could be heard to the right and everyone turned their heads to it, it was a huge submarine. Could it be SS Musashi? No, not likely, since when does Schicksal actively used a submarine? The operators also mentioned their caution about the anti-air defenses, a submarine wouldn't need to worry about that. Suddenly, the upper part of the submarine opened and several F-30 fighter jets flew out. The good news was the weather's clear so they could clearly saw everything, the bad news was the fact that those fighters heading straight toward them and a massive gun also came out of the sub and also AIMED TOWARDS THEM?!

"…Glad it just got worse, because I really need a reality check right now!" Ryan said sarcastically.

"OH COME ON! CAN'T WE CATCH A FUCKING BREAK?!" Han shouted out loud.

"Battle positions everyone! This ship is our only life line! It seems it's too good to be true for us to escape without a hurdle like this!" Namira shouted on the radio.

"So, what could we use exactly to fight a submarine, with big fucking gun on it, had fighters and all we have is wounded and tired Vikings and Valkyries with NO KINDS OF HEAVY WEAPONRY!" Han ranted while he ran to the cargo compartment.

"…Good question, because I ditched my rifle back on that island and that's the heaviest weapon I got on my load out" Ryan said somberly.

The jets fired their machine guns, everyone immediately scrambled for cover. The jets passed through their ship, but it's going to double back and they practically had zero defenses except for Bronya who appeared from inside the ship and summoned her Project Bunny.

"Down that fucking jet! I don't care how you do it!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Get to cover, girls…we're about to have a rough time!" Rahn said.

"Eat this you conniving cunts!" Han said.

Both Vikings came out with two Gatling gun on their hands and ammo box on their back, they actually desperate enough to use heavy weaponry without proper attachments? Some of The Vikings and several Valkyries also came out wielding SA2 Machine Gun and dispersed themselves all around the ship to provide 360 degrees cover, wait, how the hell they got so many guns on their hands? Butt loads of ammo on their hands too!

"That was the jeep's Gatling gun! Hey! Any other thing we could use!?" Ryan asked Han.

"There's cargo containers on the cargo compartment! There's a weapon in there!" Han said to Ryan.

"…It's a start…Come on!" Ryan said to the girls.

Ryan, Sakura, Mei, Kiana and Kallen made their way through the corridors and entered the cargo section. There he saw container boxes, with weapons inside it. What was the meaning of this? Weapon smuggling? The amount of weaponry and ammo they got here was enough to wage war for days! Kiana took in the contents of one container in detail, she was surprised on what she saw.

"Guns? Ammo? Wait, this is Phalanx Launcher! This is a civilian ship, right?!" Kiana asked Ryan.

"We'll get to that later! Take everything you could and fight those assholes outside! Move it people!" Ryan said out loud.

Ryan took a Phalanx Launcher alongside its ammo, stored it into his phase shifter and bolted his way out of the stairs back outside. He immediately put the launcher to use and tried to find a perfect spot where he could shoot down those pesky fighters without being shredded into pieces by their cannons, he was about to shoot one down when Bronya got in front of him and protected him from incoming strafing runs. The bullets were stopped by Project Bunny's shield, Bronya looked back at him and nodded her head.

"Thanks Bronya" Ryan said to Bronya.

"Yes. Pay more attention to Ryan's surrounding next time" Bronya said to Ryan.

"…Bronya is our best fighter we got in this situation" Gin said as he joined the others outside.

"Yeah…God, wish we wore those armors right about now! Going to that submarine and taking it down from inside would be a piece of cake!" Agus said as he aimed his DMR.

"Oh shut up and start shooting already!" Rahn said to Agus.

"I have to aim first you bitch, don't waste your ammo!" Agus said to Rahn.

"Take cover! Gun run inbound!" A Valkyrie shouted.

Everyone immediately get to whatever cover they could find, simply hiding from view would also be beneficial since they couldn't shoot on what they couldn't see! The fighter jet passed through the ship for the umpteenth time, Rahn suddenly stood up with an idea on his head.

"I got an idea! We silence that submarine from blasting us with their guns!" Rahn said on the radio.

"No shit Sherlock! But how do we do that exactly?!" James asked as he joined the others outside.

"Our Phalanx launcher here have the range! We could-" Rahn said.

"Got it!" James said.

James fired his Phalanx Launcher straight toward the submarine, it could be estimated that they're at least half a kilometer away from their ship. Phalanx Launcher even have the range up to one and a half kilometer, it should be within an easy reach. The missile however, exploded before it could even reach the ship because of a concentrated anti-aircraft fire that came from all over the sub.

"Nope! Bad fucking idea! At least they didn't have cruise missile right!?" Rahn said.

A missile suddenly flew off from inside the submarine, it flew high into the sky before it dived towards them. What kind of sub was that? It had hangar bay, a massive gun and now cruise missile capable? Whoever the owner of that sub must have a deep pocket because that sub must be a high tech unit that could cost massive amount of credits!

"…Oh motherfucker!" Rahn said out loud.

"Did you just jinxed us you cunt?!" James shouted at Rahn.

"Bronya! That missile would tear our ship apart, shoot it!" Ryan said to Bronya.

"Bronya is pinned down, Bronya can't move!" Bronya said.

"Incoming! Clear the bridge!" Namira shouted on the radio.

Bronya was putting up a defense against two fighters which were gunning straight for her, she can't move from her position because if she does then several Valkyries behind her who were shooting the other jets would surely turned into Swiss cheese. Ryan could only hopelessly watched the missile impacted the bridge section, the whole ship shook and more than one people fell down to the floor. The ship still kept going forward but there's no way they could steered the ship now, the bridge was destroyed.

"NO! Namira! Do you copy?! Someone need to go inside the bridge and pull them out of there!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Fuuka, Mei and I will do it! You boys focus on dealing with those fighters and submarine!" Kiana said on the radio.

"Alright, good luck!" Ryan said.

"Ryan! We got several Light Machine Guns!" Kallen came out and tossed one to Ryan.

"Better than nothing at this moment!" Ryan said as he fired his newly acquired weapon.

Both Kallen and Ryan stepped forward with their RG33 Machine Gun in hand, they fired at the jets who managed to somehow dodge all of the flying bullets and missile that came from this ship. Ryan knew they wouldn't last long, either they receive help from Musashi or they'll sunk to the bottom of the sea and all of that will be decided on by few critical minutes in the future.

"Musashi! This is 01 of Task Force Terra! We are under heavy attack! Repeat, we are under heavy attack! A submarine and several fighters! We need immediate support! Do you copy, over!?" Ryan contacted SS Musashi.

"Roger that! Our unit should arrive in three minutes, 01! Please, hang on!" The operator said.

"We'll be dead in two, Musashi! Tell them to double time it or they'll only see a sinking ship and lots of dead bodies on the water! Out!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Guess backup is still far away!?" Gin asked Ryan.

"We need to pull off a miracle and survive for three minutes! Boys! Let's show these assholes that even Vikings are barbaric enough without their armor!" Ryan said on the radio.

""""""""""HUZZAH!"""""""""" The entire Viking unit who could fight roared on the radio.

They continued the fight, none of them would take the fact that they've come so far only to get attacked by these unknown units. They'll show them why they shouldn't pick a fight with Task Force Terra! Everyone that could fight headed outside armed with whatever guns that they could use to fight, they'll go down fighting if they have to. The massive cannon fired and it hit the rear part of the ship, all of a sudden the sound of the engine could no longer be heard around the ship.

"They got the engine!" Igor shouted on the radio.

"God fucking damnit! Another shot of that and we're better off swimming!" Agus said on the radio.

"Is there any conventional weapons that we could use to silence that cannon?!" Kallen asked on the radio.

"Zilch!" Han answered on the radio.

"Bronya, how about your overcharged shot?!" Ryan asked on the radio.

"If Bronya do that, the jets will took advantage of it to strike us!" Bronya said on the radio.

"Doesn't matter, we'll cover you! Those who got Phalanx Launcher! Time your fucking shots for the jets! We need to give Bronya an opening to take out that massive gun!" Ryan commanded on the radio.

Suddenly, the entire ship went silent as everyone started to carefully aim their shots and to lure the jets into false sense of security. But before they could execute their plan, the massive gun fired again. Luckily this time it missed but the shockwave produced when passing through was enough to send everyone near it flying for a short distance, Han raised himself from the floor and helped Ryan up.

"…Well shit! It missed but it fried our hairs!" Han said to Ryan.

"Yeah…It took them one minute to reload! Now's our chance, Bronya charge your cannon! We'll harass those fighters!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Bronya, roger!" Bronya said.

The resistance resumed as each and every Valkyries and Vikings onboard the ship renewed their fighting resolve, all in or nothing. They heard an explosion, they thought their ship was done for but it came from the skies. One of the enemy jet fell to the sea while burning, another soon followed suit after a missile struck it. They looked to their left and saw a formation of N45 Fighter Jets, flying in arrowhead formation.

Nero 45 was Schicksal exclusive air superiority jets, produced and owned by corporation directly under Schicksal influence. Only Schicksal who had these jets in their inventory and often carried on their ships, these jets were also one of the most advanced jet currently in the world which also capable of outer space travel. It's a good sign for Task Force Terra because this one won't bombed them! Instead, the jet went past them and fired off missile barrages toward the submarine. The sub received substantial damage as some part of its hull were blown off.

"Take that you piece of metallic shit!" Ryan shouted.

"Ja! JA! That's what I'm talking about!" Han shouted as he pumped his fist.

"Was that ours!?" Gin asked the others.

"Hell yeah it is!" Agus said to Gin.

"01, this is Apex Squadron, glad we could made it in time. You boys and girls look like in need of help. We'll help you deal with the fighters, prepare for evac guys The Albatrosses is on their way" Someone said from the friendly jets.

"We didn't become corpses because of you guys! Thanks for the assist Apex Squadron, we owe you one!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Roger that, just make sure you come back alive and that'll be our payment. You youngsters been through a lot, you'll do well in the future" The other person on the squadron said.

"Thanks, we'll make sure of it…Let's finish that submarine! Bronya, status!?" Ryan asked Bronya.

"Ten seconds to complete charge!" Bronya said.

But the submarine quickly dived, the jets also missed their second run because of that. Most of The Vikings and Valkyries groaned in frustration, they really wanted to sink that hunk of metal for ruining their afternoon with harassment! None of them were smiling despite the fact that the submarine left them alone now, they were dissatisfied with the outcome.

"It dived! Aw fuck! We were so close!" James said on the radio.

"Doesn't matter now! Get everyone ready on the top deck…we're getting out of here!" Ryan said on the radio.

An Albatross dropship approached their ship, everyone lined up and carried the wounded first into the dropship. Kiana, Mei, Kallen, Fuuka, Bronya and Sakura were done carrying the wounded with total fifty-three of them. The dropship lifted off the ship's surface and passed the second dropship who were there to pick up those who could still fight, Kiana and Kallen sat on the ground with a relieved smile, Sakura leaned on the wall and sighed, Bronya was being hugged by Mei in sheer happiness and Fuuka stared at The Vikings who were still carrying their heavy weaponries.

"…They said they didn't specialized on fighting Honkai creatures, what nonsense" Fuuka said while smiling.

"What? The fact that without them then we'll be stuck on that island forever or die when the police station got overrun?" Kallen asked Fuuka.

"They're indeed an effective unit to combat human enemies, but their skills and resourcefulness should be praised as well" Mei said to Fuuka.

"These are them without their Sleipnir Armor…Can you imagine how could it turn out even better if they wore those?" Kallen said out loud.

"Guess that one week training paid off well…Now all we have to left is to return to Soukai" Kiana simply commented while smiling.

The dropship touched down and everyone remaining boarded it, they were just in time because the ship exploded in a big fiery explosions few seconds later as the dropship lift off. Everyone on board immediately hanged on to something sturdy with Ryan and Kiana being the last aboard had to steady themselves or falling off the dropship.

"Any second longer and we're toasted!" Kiana said out loud.

"Yeah…it's over, at last" Ryan said as he closed the dropship's rear entrance.

Ryan walked ahead to the other end of the dropship in slow pace, everyone else was either talking or immediately fell asleep. Ryan reached the wall that separates the cargo compartment with the cockpit, he leaned on it before he slowly fell to the floor. He smiled at seeing all of these people that could made it, now he just hoped that the wounded would survive…Ryan took out his chrome flask and shook it lightly, he then opened it and drank from it until it became empty. He then noticed that his eyelids were getting heavy, when was the last time he sleep anyway?

He didn't care anymore as he closed his eyes, he took off his helmet, his combat goggles and his balaclava. He simply put those on his lap before he shut his eyes completely, he shouldn't forget that somewhere down the line he was still a human…Ryan didn't know how long they've been flying but he finally opened his eyes, he saw that the side hatch near him was opened. There, he could finally see it.

SS Musashi, Schicksal Hull Model 12 'Belisarius Class' Heavy Frigate, it's a five hundred meter long frigate that was equipped both for water cruise and air cruise. Equipped with several main cannons, cruise missiles, point defense cannons and one hangar. The dropship approached the hangar, some medics and technicians crowded the area as they help Task Force Terra personnel disembarked from the aircraft, carried the wounded and helped the others that were still healthy by offering some food and water.

Disembarking as the last one, Ryan took a good look around and relished the fact that everyone could made it back and rendezvoused with a friendly ship. He looked to the right and saw a Charon dropship that landed beside their Albatross, three persons came out from its passenger bay and they were Siegfried, Cecilia and Victoria. The three of them spotted Ryan and made their way toward him, one thing could describe on how he looked…a mess.

"You went to hell and back again" Siegfried commented.

"Not the first time, but I still couldn't get used to it" Ryan said to Siegfried.

"Right…call your men, Ryan. We're moving for debriefing ASAP" Victoria said to Ryan.

"…Yes ma'am" Ryan answered.

.

"I'm damn proud of you boys, I really do…The girls have told me of what did you accomplished during that entire fuck fest, all of you really exceeds my expectations…All of you are more than worthy to wear that armor" Victoria said while smiling.

Twelve Vikings seated inside the briefing room of SS Musashi, they would need to do this each time after a mission or an operation to understand better on what's going on in the field and on the control room during the mission or operation. They needed to do this one as soon as possible while their memories still fresh, they've gone missing from the world for two days and had been constantly attacked...They're just recruits, but they've handled it well enough to warrant a medal for everyone in the task force.

"…Thanks but, right now all we care about is how the hell things went so wrong on that mission, Victoria…We were lucky that there are zero killed on that mess" Han said to Victoria.

"Right, so here's what we know…When mission started, we still able to monitored your conversations until the missiles struck. Then it's all silence, operation channel didn't work and satellite feed was useless due to the interference…We sent the three Charon's to investigate but they never made it, their radar blips disappeared twenty kilometers from the island" Victoria explained.

"Three hours after we lost contact, we tried to send drones but it ended the same…Realizing someone interfered directly, we called Battle Group Bussan to help. Though, they have to be careful because they will be heading into unknown danger. They arrived around ten o'clock at night, they kept circling the AO to get any signs of your presence but without approaching the island directly it's impossible to determine your status…Then, we caught a signal of civilian boat. The rest is history" Victoria further explained.

"…Circumstances didn't really allow us to sacrifice so much to rescue you guys, I'm really sorry" Victoria said with apologetic tone.

"This fourth faction, do you have any clues on who are they?" Gin asked Victoria.

"We swapped a lot of Intel between Schicksal, United Nations and several countries but so far we didn't found a name, all we know is that group you fought on the boat? They're practically nonexistent" Victoria said to Gin.

"And what do you mean by that?" Rahn asked Victoria.

"What I'm saying is, there are zero records involving them…It's like they just appeared out of thin air" Victoria said the conclusion.

"…This shit became even more confusing since we escape the damn island" Rahn said as he scratched his head.

"Commander Ryan? You have been quiet since the debriefing started" Victoria noted.

It's true, Ryan hadn't spoke a word since they entered the briefing room. He was busy contemplating in his own thoughts regarding this fourth faction, why would they appeared now? They used the temporary blindness of Schisksal's satellite network to do whatever they pleases on that island, they even sent a high tech submarine to chased them down in the middle of the sea few seconds after they requested for help to Schicksal...What were they after? There's so many blank spots to fill and the puzzle pieces weren't complete yet.

"…A lot of this situations are basically a complete chaos. Unknown missile struck our task force, fake distress call response that bombed us, civilian cargo ships that was full of weapons, even a hostile high tech submarine with fighter escorts and coastal gun…Let me boldly assume here, it really felt like someone purposely sabotage our operation and prodded us to see how will we react to survive" Ryan said his theory.

"…That's a really bold assumption there" Victoria commented.

"…Right, in the meantime, rest up boys. You guys earned it" Ryan said to his men.

The Vikings nodded their heads as they stood up and exited the room for some shower, hot meal and probably a good fucking sleep on the mattress instead of cold floor. Victoria smiled as she sat beside Ryan who leaned his head back on the chair, she knew they'll pull it off but to actually think all of The Vikings made it back despite half of them being injured? That's a miracle right there.

"...Ryan…glad you made it out" Victoria said to Ryan.

"…Yeah, but I left with even more questions, Victoria" Ryan said to Victoria.

"…You mean that fourth faction?" Victoria asked Ryan.

"That and Schicksal's lack of response, what the hell is going on?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Yeah, this will take a while to explain" Victoria said as she also leaned on the chair.

"Short version?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Shit hit the fan, then…A fourth faction capable jamming Schicksal's specific network frequency, imitating it so they could appear as Schicksal and running ops on that island before a Honkai energy eruption happened…why do I got a feeling that somehow they're the ones behind this incident?" Victoria said her own accusation.

"...Yeah but without evidence its nothing but a load of accusation right now…How's Schicksal when we left?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"Confused to say the least, the mission control center back on the academy was a mess. So, we finally had to contact Far Eastern HQ to withheld the missile strike" Victoria answered.

"They agreed and sent in Battle Group Bussan to investigate?" Ryan concluded.

"Yeah, something like that" Victoria said.

They fell into brief silence for a while, Victoria took a look at Ryan's face who were bandaged from James knife slash back on the island. Despite all of his experience, Ryan still got wounded too and that proved on how unpredictable and perilous the situation was. She would make sure to let them go in their next mission fully equipped with their armor, even if she had to take some brunt of harsh words from that guy who funded this project...The Vikings proved themselves and they shall received their rewards.

"…I'm sorry Ryan, this isn't how it supposed to go for the unit's first mission" Victoria said to Ryan.

"Can't help it, no one would expect us to be ambushed…it's a good lesson for everyone" Ryan said to Victoria.

"You're optimistic" Victoria noted while smiling.

"I try, good for morale…How's the injured by the way?" Ryan asked Victoria.

"The medics and the doctors are doing the best they can right now, so far so good…none have died but some of them need organ transplant, we're making our way back to Soukai as soon as possible" Victoria said.

"…Sakura was right, if we kept going with the boat then they'll surely die…I'm going to clear my head first"Ryan stood up from his seat.

"Alright…Hey, Ryan?" Victoria called him

"Yeah?" Ryan answered.

Victoria wordlessly threw him something that he caught midair, Ryan looked at what he caught and saw a packet of cigarettes and small lighter on its side. Ryan wasn't exactly a smoker but he heard about its effectiveness in calming the mind when needed, he just nodded appreciatively to Victoria and then took off. Ryan walked outside the briefing room, he walked toward the medical bay and saw that the place was crowded.

Many of the injured were being treated, some were on surgery while the few others loitered around talking or comforting the injured. Ryan glanced to the left a little and saw Kiana and Kallen being hugged by Cecilia who had tears of relief in her eyes, Siegfried stood beside them and he was also smiling in relief. Sakura helped tending an injured Valkyrie, Bronya was being patched up by Mei and Fuuka was talking to a doctor about something.

Ryan smiled a bit then he walked past the medical bay and head toward the open space in the hangar, he leaned on the railing and watched bristling activity on the hangar bay. Ryan took one cigar out, put it on his mouth, took the lighter out and lit it. He sucked a bit and then exhaled the smoke, he looked on the cigar and smiled a bit.

"Hey buddy, mind if you share? I left mine back on the sleeping quarters"

A Schicksal Rifleman approached Ryan, he was carrying an M20SAR and it looks like he's on patrol. Ryan wordlessly handed him the cigarette pack alongside the lighter, the rifleman took it and lit one up for himself. Ryan inspected him, he wore dark grey Battle Dress Uniform with black combat helmet, black armor plating on his torso, shoulders, arms and legs. He's Asian, looking rather young and he also currently leaning on the rail guard like Ryan did.

"You're from Task Force Terra huh?" The rifleman asked.

"Yeah" Ryan simply answered.

"I heard shit really went down on your mission, you're holding up?" The rifleman asked again.

"Yeah, I am…Haven't rest for twenty nine hours though" Ryan said to the rifleman.

"Whoa, that's rough buddy. You might want to get some chow then take a hot shower, it'll do you good" The rifleman advised.

"Will do, thanks for the advice" Ryan said.

"Yeah, I'm gonna go back to patrol now. Thanks for sharing" The rifleman tapped Ryan's shoulder.

"Don't mind it" Ryan said while nodding.

The rifleman walked off and almost bumped into Bronya, she ignored the staring rifleman and went toward Ryan. Ryan was enjoying his cigar when he noticed Bronya staring at him with wide eyes, he caught Bronya was looking at him and his eyes also went wide. Majority of the girls on Soukai frowned on smoking, polls held on last week shows that around eighty seven percent of women on Soukai did not agree on smoking publically…

"…Shit" Ryan muttered.

"…Why did Ryan smoke?" Bronya asked while tilting her head to the right.

"Errr…Yeah, heard it was great to relieve stress?" Ryan answered awkwardly.

"…Research have said that cigarettes has addictive substance on it, Ryan will get addicted if Ryan kept smoking" Bronya said.

"Aww, are you worried about my health, Bronya?" Ryan asked in teasing tone.

"…Ryan and Bronya are friends, it's only natural that Bronya would worry about Ryan's health" Bronya answered monotonously.

Bronya might not seemed like it but she was a caring person, even though her methods could be called ruthless sometimes.

"Hehe…yeah, thanks…But don't worry, compared to my drinking habits this was nothing" Ryan said while shrugging.

And the entire unit knew about this, the fact that Ryan was actually borderline alcoholic. But he hide this well because he kept it in moderation with his self-control when outside his apartment, when inside however it was a different story. Ryan's fridge always stocked up with alcohol beverages, he also drink at least one can whenever he was stressed which was quite often these days. Somehow, he's a heavy drinker too so it will took a lot of alcohol before he could went unconscious because of the drink.

"…Mei and Sakura would nag at Ryan for that" Bronya said while pointing at Ryan.

"That would only happen if they knew, don't tell them would you? I'm willing to pay compensation for the trouble" Ryan said while winking.

"Don't tell us what now, Ryan-kun?" Someone said in sweet tone behind Ryan.

"…Why did you do this, god?" Ryan muttered under his breath.

Talk about being caught red handed at worst possible moments, Mei, Kiana and Cecilia were walking toward the hangar bay to get something from The Charon Transport that Siegfried, Cecilia and Victoria used to get to SS Musashi. They were five meters from exiting the door when they heard Ryan's voice, it was at that moment when they heard about Ryan telling Bronya on not reporting him to someone. Then they saw it, Ryan was holding a cigarettes on his right hand. Mei frowned in disapproval, Kiana was glaring at Ryan and Cecilia put her right hand on her right cheek while saying 'Araaa'.

"You…smoke?" Mei asked Ryan.

"…On some occasion, yes" Ryan answered.

"Ugh, you reeked of tobacco" Kiana said while she pinched her nose.

"It isn't good for your health, Ryan-kun. Don't do it often" Mei said to Ryan sternly.

"Right, I won't…" Ryan said as he put off the cigar on his right hand.

Ryan glanced at Kiana who scoffed at him while she avoided looking at him, he cocked his eyebrows and glanced at Mei and Cecilia who only smiled at each other then left the area after waving a bit at him. Kiana approached Ryan and lightly smacked his left arm, Ryan yelped a bit before Kiana also leaned on the railing still with a displeased look on her face.

"Again?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Consider yourself off the hook lightly, I used to kick my dad whenever he would smoke inside the house" Kiana said.

"Whoa, how did that go?" Ryan asked curiously.

"He still took one sometimes but at least it was outside…I didn't like the smell of tobacco, that's why he started to tone it down a bit" Kiana said while frowning.

"I see, I'll keep that in mind" Ryan said as he was back leaning on the guard rail.

Kiana took a brief glance at Ryan's face, he looked tired with black eye bags, drowsy eyes and his face was a bit pale but somehow he still stood like he's battle ready at any given moments. Maybe it will took a while to unwind, Kiana herself was told to not strain herself for few days in order for her injuries to heal better by the doctor after she got pinched in the right cheek by Cecilia. Kiana smiled a bit, she was relishing the fact that she won't have to hide anymore when interacting with him.

"Have you eat yet?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"No, I haven't" Ryan answered.

"That won't do, when was the last time you had something on your stomach?" Kiana asked while frowning.

"…Twenty hours ago? Before mission kicks off?" Ryan answered unsurely.

…Holy shit, Ryan realized he only ate a military ration just before he went to that town and got bombed! That wasn't a fulfilling meal too, so how come he still able to stand twenty hours later without feeling hunger? Nah, he actually felt it yet he choose not to acknowledge it. Kiana noticed that Ryan was actually slimmer compared to the first time they were reunited on the first day of school, he must have not been eating well since then.

"…Ryan, don't make skipping a meal a habit will you?" Kiana told Ryan.

"Old habits die hard they said, I'm used to conserving food so much that I ended up not eating anything at all for a day sometimes…" Ryan said in somber tone.

"The days you're on the red zone is way behind you now, as much as I like your slim yet muscly body you need to put on a bit of fat! Like my dad for example, he's not too buffed but not too slim either!" Kiana said while grinning.

"Huh, I guess that's your preference in men!" Ryan said as he smirked.

"That you're right about, so I'd like to see you like that!" Kiana said while grinning.

But deep down inside, Kiana was internally screaming at herself with how bold she'd became when she declared her preference straight to his face! What's gotten into her? Did she lose all form of self-control when she thought that she didn't have to hide anymore from him? Was she always this bold? She's confident for sure, but the words she spoke few seconds ago made her rethink that she's borderline shameless!

"Hahahaha, man, I got a lot to live up to then…I got something for you too Kiana" Ryan said to Kiana.

"Huh? Really?" Kiana asked Ryan.

Ryan moved a bit closer toward Kiana as her eyes widened, her heart was pounding rapidly inside her as she anticipated on what will Ryan do to her? Closing her eyes though, she's prepared for anything…Few seconds passed and she opened her right eye only to found Ryan pinched her right cheek, it's only for two seconds but she definitely felt that.

"Ouch! You too!?" Kiana said in protest.

"I know you only want to protect Mei and I but what you were doing back there was too reckless! Don't just threw your life away like that, you have people that will be greatly saddened if you're gone…myself included" Ryan said to Kiana with serious expression.

"...Okay, okay! I get it, don't be reckless" Kiana said while she looked to the right side.

"Good, we've only just met again too after so long" Ryan smiled a bit.

"…That we do huh?" Kiana said while smiling a bit too.

They fell into silence as they watched the activity of the hangar bay, several N45 fighters approached the hangar and landed inside it. The pilots came out of their vehicles, Kiana guessed they must be the pilots of Apex Squadron. She silently thank them for saving her when another shot from that submarine would surely sunk them, she was smiling when she heard Ryan said something to her.

"…You'd make an excellent wife, Kiana" Ryan said in soft tone.

"W-W-W-What's this all of a sudden?!" Kiana's face was practically flaming red.

"I mean, your nagging is quite effective! That's why I'd say that-" Ryan said while smiling.

"M-Marriage is definitely too early for me! I haven't even thought about it!" Kiana waved her hands in front of her.

"That's why I said that, you better start thinking about it!" Ryan said, he's grinning this time.

"I-I know that you could technically do it once you were sixteen! But you know, we still need to…Wait, you're teasing me?!" Kiana eyes went wide in realization.

"Oh, you just noticed?" Ryan smiled smugly.

"Why you little piece of-!" Kiana gritted her teeth with blushing cheeks.

Kiana wasn't afraid to launch barrage of punches at Ryan though this one didn't have any strength on it, more like friendly pat more than a beat down. Ryan only chuckled as he voluntarily received hits from Kiana, he might make this a habit in the future…There's something refreshing in seeing someone felt they've been tricked…Ryan wonder if he's a sadist deep inside?

"Aw that hurt!" Ryan mockingly said.

"Suck it up! You earned that one!" Kiana said with her tongue out.

"Heh, you're so cute when you get flustered like that!" Ryan said as he went back to the railing.

"Oh yeah?" Kiana asked Ryan.

Fuck it, was what on Kiana's mind as she went in for the kill. She softly pressed her lips on Ryan's left cheek. He's taller than her so she had to tiptoed a bit so she could reach his face, she closed her eyes and then pulled back just after two seconds of contact…Ryan's eye went wide, his mouth was agape and he stared at Kiana like a gold fish. Kiana pulled back as she walked away, a victorious smirk adorned her face.

"That's payback for calling me cute! Now go get yourself to the mess hall!" Kiana said.

All of a sudden though Kiana stopped moving while facing away from Ryan, the girl then turned back with her hand behind her. Ryan cocked his eyebrows in confusion, why would she stopped? Did she have something she wished to say?

"Kiana?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"…Thanks to you and The Vikings, we were able to escape and everyone returned alive…I'm grateful, thanks for saving our skins" Kiana said while smiling broadly.

Ryan's eyes went wide at what he saw. Kiana was smiling broadly, with blush adorned her cheeks and half lidded blue eyes…Absolutely cute! Ryan felt his cheek flushed at how cute Kiana was, she immediately walked away after that but Ryan was still standing as if he was frozen in time. Five seconds passed, Ryan finally returned to his sense after being stunned. He shook his head yet that image had been forever painted on his mind…

"…Sheesh, she got me good…that was hella cute!" Ryan said out loud.

"Ara ara, that's quite the statement, Ryan" Someone from behind Ryan said.

It was Cecilia who stood behind him on purpose so she could watch the little interaction between her daughter and him, she had to say its like straight out of romance anime. She secretly cheered on her daughter inside her heart, especially when she saw how bold Kiana had become with that kiss on the cheek. You go girl! Show him how Kaslana women get their man! Cecilia maybe Shariac by blood but in soul she's a Kaslana nonetheless.

"W-Whoa, Mrs. Cecilia! You heard that?" Ryan turned around in surprise.

"Yup I heard everything, I stayed behind because I'm quite curious you know?" Cecilia said while smiling.

"…Okay…hope Mei isn't there with her" Ryan muttered quietly.

"Oh yes, I'm also here because Sieg asked to meet you" Cecilia said to Ryan.

"Now?" Ryan squinted his eyes.

"Now, please follow me" Cecilia said as she walked past Ryan.

Ryan followed Cecilia through series of halls around the ship, that until she stopped in front of a specific door along the hallways. She pressed the button on the door which opened it, inside was an armory and there was Siegfried who was seated on a metallic chair while waiting for Cecilia and Ryan. He raised himself up when they entered the room, Ryan looked back when Cecilia locked the door behind them.

"Hey there, you still look like shit!" Siegfried said while smiling.

"Someone have to keep your daughter safe while you're away, my arms seemed to be the right place despite my shitty appearance!" Ryan said while smirking.

Siegfried snorted and he laughed, who would've thought that the young man in front of him wasn't afraid to say that to his female friend's father. But that just showed Siegfried that the young man in front of him wasn't fazed by status or anything, a human's a human to him.

"Whoa! That was barbaric, hahahahaha! I like your style, young man!" Siegfried commented while smiling.

"Ha…So, what's with the armory?" Ryan asked Siegfried.

"Nothing, this armory is just the right place for some privacy" Siegfried said.

Siegfried nodded at Cecilia who in turn pulled out a black rectangular box out seemingly out of nowhere, she held it on her hands before she offered the box at Ryan who stared in confusion at her. He also stared at Siegfried with cocked eyebrows, he seriously didn't know what the hell was going on right now.

"This?" Ryan asked Siegfried.

"Open it, take a look" Siegfried said while smiling.

Ryan shrugged as he took the box from Cecilia's hand, he opened the lid and saw the content beneath the black box. There was a single black revolver encased around the red fabric, but Ryan had never seen a weapon like this on the battlefield before. Ryan took the gun from the box and a moon clip filled with six .50 caliber handgun bullets, he held the gun on his hand as Cecilia took the box away from him gently.

"Go on, test it out" Siegfried said.

Ryan inspected the gun's characteristics by examining it, sure it looked like a fancy revolver. White and gold paint job that didn't reflect light, slightly longer barrel which Ryan supposed could be fitted with a suppressor, iron sight with railings above the magazine and another under the barrel which could be used for fitting attachments, Ryan took out the cylinder magazine that could fit six bullets, he then put it back as he aimed at the random direction and squeezed the trigger twice in lightning speed, the gun clicked twice at the same speed then Ryan threw it midair before catching it back on his right hand, it was heavier than his M1911H.

"You may want to test fire it" Cecilia said to Ryan.

"Alright" Ryan simply answered.

Six .50 caliber handgun bullets, Ryan loaded it all into the cylindrical magazine. He inserted the magazine back, spun the gun once and aimed it at the metallic dummy target practice on the far side of the wall before he squeezed the trigger for six times under three seconds. Six bullets hit the dummy target in the center of the body mass, Ryan unloaded the empty rounds from the gun. Siegfried nodded his head in approval while Cecilia smiled at the proficient display of gun skill, she supposed not even Kiana could fire hand cannons as fast as he did yet.

"What's your take on it?" Siegfried asked.

"…Heavier than my current M1911H, excellent responsive and light trigger mechanism, tons of customization potential and manageable recoil even when fired with one hand. One heck of a weapon here" Ryan commented.

"Good…it's yours" Siegfried said.

"…Wait, what?" Ryan was taken aback.

"You heard me, it's yours now" Siegfried said to Ryan.

"I can't just accept this! Must've cost a lot of money!" Ryan said as he offered the gun back.

"No…It's a legacy" Siegfried said with down casted look.

"…Huh?" Ryan asked in confusion.

"…This gun was your father's primary weapon" Siegfried explained to Ryan.

Ryan looked back on the gun that he held right now, this was his father's gun? Huh, guess his father also a fan of one shot one kill policy with this kind of gun being his primary weapon. Then again, every Knight of Schicksal possessed melee weapon on their load out…What was his father's? A longsword was the most likely candidate, but Ryan could think about that later. Right now, he's focused on another memento of his father.

"…Dad's gun, huh…he gave this to you?" Ryan said as he inspected the gun again.

"Yeah, that is a PM3, codenamed Athena…He's a fan of Saint Seiya series" Siegfried said while snickering.

"…That was quite random" Ryan cocked his eyebrows.

"Just a bit of trivia hahahahaha! He loved this gun as much as he loves Aurora…I'm sure he would want his son to be the one who wield it next, he always knew you'd grew to be a fighter one day" Siegfried said to Ryan.

"Hahaha, did he predict that when I'm still a toddler?" Ryan asked after chuckling.

"Even better, he knows even when you're still inside Aurora's womb" Siegfried said seriously.

Ryan cocked his eyebrows, his dad was that good? Holy hell, even before he was born his father already knew that he will have to fight sometime in the future. With a universe as fucked up as he currently inhabited, his father's guess wasn't that farfetched. He would probably joined Schicksal's Knight Division if he stay on Europe and he had to survive through hell if he went to Japan, both routes resulted in the same outcome. The question was, how did his father knew and how the hell does that even works?

"Wait, how the hell does that even work?" Ryan was genuinely confused.

"Beats me…But yeah, he had never been wrong before…And I see that still hold true even now" Siegfried said.

Siegfried stared at Ryan who once again inspected his father's handgun, he twirled the gun twice before he gripped it and aimed it straight toward the dummy target practice. In split seconds, Siegfried could see the resemblance between Ryan and his father…His hair was dark green instead of blonde, their serious face resembled each other. So many similarities between them…What a great shame, Siegfried would never see both Fredrick and Ryan fight together. It'll be a sight to see.

"…The more I found out about him…the more question I have about him" Ryan said softly.

"Don't worry about it kiddo, we'll help as much as we can…We have considered you as if you're our own son since long time ago" Siegfried said as he grabbed Ryan's left shoulder.

"That's right, Ryan. We've said it already but if you ever need help, don't hesitate to come to us" Cecilia said while smiling.

"…Thanks…both of you…I really appreciate it" Ryan smiled, broadly for the first time in months.

The unit first mission had ended, though horribly with failed operation it certainly gave them many important lessons. It seemed everyone will make it out alive, all seventy four heads accounted for with no one left behind. It's time for them to return to Soukai, rest and maybe goes on vacation for a bit. There's no way they would want to go on a mission or even goes to school tomorrow after all of this mess, no way in hell…

* * *

 **Weapons Trivia**

 **Phalanx Launcher: Descendant of the Javelin Launcher where the design changed so much they opt to create new weapon instead, thus Phalanx Launcher is born. It's one and half a meter in length, smaller than Javelin Launcher, with smaller computer, digital camera sights and added laser guidance if all kind of tracking also fails, this weapon is quite costly to produce and that's why it wasn't often seen on the field. Most armies prefer to equip their army with Brune Launcher or RPG10 as they were cheaper and easier to produce in large quantity compared to Phalanx, that's why this weapon only usually seen wielded by special forces or elite units. This weapon also packed bigger explosive yield compared to Brune and RPG10 where a single hit from this weapon could blow an entire fighter jet, however the weapon is susceptible to EMP's due to their onboard electronic mechanism and other vital components making it impossible to use if hit by one.**

 **PM3: Pegasus Mark 3 is a double action heavy revolver chambered with .50 caliber pistol rounds, a specialized handgun created and designed by Fredrick Taurus. Tuned for quick shooting, the weapon function took an inspiration from M1911H as a hand cannon with moderate recoil while the appearance resembled Water Spirit Type 1 Handgun. Coupled with how light the trigger is, the gun could empty its entire cylindrical magazine as quickly as the wielder could pull the trigger. It's painted in white and gold painting, with railings above the cylindrical magazine and under the gun's barrel, heavy for a pistol classed weapon and has an extended barrel part which could be used to attach silencer. Overall, the gun is completely customizable with only the weight as the drawback. It took a strong arm to fire this gun and kept a steady accuracy, but the damage it gives will make sure every shot is lethal.**

* * *

 **Preview of the next chapter (Rest and Recreation)**

 **"HEY! RYAN! MIA KHALIFA IS ON YOUR DOORSTEP!"  
**

 **"Too bad girl! Now we got each other shame cards!"**

 **"R-Ryan-kun that's my, Ahn!"**

 **"...You know, this is the last thing I got on my mind when you mention 'recreation'"**

 **"...Ryan, do you know why I brought you to my room today? While dad and mom weren't at home?"**

 **"I'll see you guys in jail then, this would surely land us in one!"**

 **"Uhm...Himeko-san? Mind explaining to me while you're here?"**

 **"Truth or dare? With me as the only guy? I could sense a disaster before it even happens"**

 **"...I can't take it anymore! Ryan! Prepare yourself!"**

 **"Ha? W-Wait! Don't take off my pants! H-Holy shit!"**

* * *

 **Status Update**

 **Acheivement Unlocked: The Great Escape**


	10. Rest and recreation

**...I was overjoyed with the fact that forty days cursed task was over that my progress in this story kind of stall for a bit, so I quickly get back on my feet and continuing this project. Thank you for the review, follow and favorite dear readers! Here's the next chapter that I said would be released in mid-August (Yeah, late AF). The story officially hit M rating so viewer discretion is strongly advised for further chapters from now on. Enjoy! Now I could get some sleep…**

 **Oh by the way, do any of you know that there's Honkai Impact 3 Mod for Left 4 Dead 2 game? Yeah, I've tried the mod and man it was interesting! Shame I couldn't use Ryan character model for it could really suit how his involvement in Southern Japan Honkai Invasion…But being able to play as Kallen dual wielding handguns, Sakura with a katana, Theresa with her axe, Bronya with her cannons and Kiana with a hand cannon slaying zombies in an FPS? Freaking cool! The modder (HCHA) have my respect and gratitude for creating the mod. (Kinda wish it would have the Japanese audio too, but I'll take what I can get…Beggars can't be choosers :v).**

* * *

An Albatross Dropship touched down on the courtyard of Saint Freya Academy, which its surroundings were crowded by students from combat and regular division, base personnel and teaching faculty. All of them were about to witness the return of the most probably the luckiest bunch of recruits ever in the history of the academy personnel deployment, the rear hatch opened slowly and once it reached the ground everyone disembarked in orderly manner.

It didn't took long before clapping sounds filled the area, cheers welcomed these recruits home, whistles accompanied close behind, flowers were thrown at them and some erected the banner from The Combat Division Building's rooftop which had writing 'Welcome Back Task Force Terra!' written in bold letters.

The base personnel immediately moved the wounded to the medical wings, the rest who were still healthy or able to stand up lined themselves in the courtyard as two person approached at them from the front. They were Theresa and Himeko, each wore their respective usual attire with smiles on their faces.

The recruits may seemed healthy but hell, their souls was in dire need of rest after the failed operation. Theresa took a good long look at her students which she was proud of, the cheers and claps gradually fell silent as Himeko raised her hand.

"I have a lot I want to say to you bunch of boys and girls! But I don't want to deny you of your rest any longer…Despite the odds, despite the enemies best effort, despite everything that had happened, all of you managed to return home! That alone was something you have to take pride on! Not many recruits could say that they managed to escape from a perilous situation alive! In honor of your actions, bravery and undying resolve to return alive, I will personally award each and every one of you a Bronze Medal of Valor!" Theresa proclaimed loudly.

Cheers and whistles returned as Theresa and Himeko guided the exhausted members of Task Force Terra inside the school combat division building. Bronze Medal of Valor, an award given to the member of Schicksal who survived a dangerous mission and managed to return with Intel of the enemy.

Because of that operation, now Schicksal knew about the existence of this mysterious faction…The Vikings stopped themselves when they saw a grey Charon Transport flew overhead…They knew who was in it and more than one of them thought a hundred ways to take his life. But for now, all they want was to rest.

The Vikings and Valkyrie were currently on the cafeteria, they're waiting for their meals before they will head home. At least that's the plan before the door opened up and Han came inside, all of them still dressed as they were during their mission. More than one head turned toward Han who had this mysterious grin on his face, he carefully surveyed the room.

"Well then! This may break the rules, but I'd say fuck that for now! Ready your kidneys boys and girls! I've come with my promise!" Han loudly said.

"…Huh? Did he said something like that back then?" Gin asked the others.

"Oh yes, he promised that drinks are on him if we make it back" Igor said with his right hand on his chin.

"For real?! Oi sir! Don't hold back on us! Give us the good stuffs already!" A Viking said to Han.

"I see some of us can't hold back their thirst! Enjoy this bunch of stuff I proclaimed legally! Don't ask how I got it though!" Han said as he pointed at the doorway.

Several students pushed a cart from Han's back into the cafeteria, it's filled with brand names alcoholic drinks supplemented with ice cubes and several box of orange juices for those who were too pussy to drink inside school environments. The Vikings roared in delights while The Valkyries put on complicated expression on their beautiful faces…Yeah, most of The Vikings were actually a year or two older than the girls, they were accustomed to drinking while the girls didn't.

"Drink till you drop you bastards! I want to see this bottles empty!" Han said out loud.

"…Those guys acted like a real Viking from back then" Kallen said with half opened eyes.

"…I can't help myself but to be bewildered at their excitements" Mei said while she rested her head on her hands.

"But you don't seem like so" Kallen noted as she looked at Mei.

"Am I? Well, I guess that's because it's fun to see the boys being so lively…They may cause antics in the future, but that's what will brighten up our batch, no?" Mei asked while she stared back at Kallen.

"When you put it like that…Yeah, they could be another form of entertainment" Kallen said while smiling.

"Wait, where's that green haired man? He's not with us!" Rahn said out loud.

That's when everyone practically looked around the cafeteria, they didn't found anyone with green hair among them…Ryan Taurus, gone missing, without them noticing? These many heads and they didn't see him escape? How the hell did that happened? None of them saw him as they made their way back to cafeteria? No, he left no trace for them. Ryan will join them in the celebration but first, he had something to take care of.

In the headmaster's chamber, Ryan stood in full alert as he faced six people. Theresa, Himeko, Victoria, Cecilia, Siegfried and Jill. They stood behind Theresa while she sat on her headmaster seat, Ryan stared at each and every one of them and couldn't help but to wonder why would he's the only one they called here.

"Ryan, do you know why I called you here?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"No, all I know is that you didn't really upheld your words back on the courtyard" Ryan answered with a straight face.

Siegfried was chuckling while Cecilia stared at her husband with confused gaze. Ryan was not amused in the slightest when he received a direct radio chatter telling him to immediately head toward The Headmistress Chamber, he half expected that he could go to cafeteria, eat some food, drink some tea and maybe had some nice fucking sleep since the one he took on SS Musashi wasn't satisfying…But man, he had to deal with after action report like this? What did Theresa want from him?

"You know darling, I'm liking this new him more every day. Despite the serious situation he's in, he could still crack jokes" Siegfried said to Cecilia.

"Maybe you misinterpreted his sarcasm, dear" Cecilia said to Siegfried.

"Both could mean the same to me" Siegfried said as he shrugged.

"I want you to describe this unknown faction that you encounter back on that island…in detail" Theresa said in serious tone.

Ryan narrowed his eyes, he got a gut feeling that he need to keep his mouth from running amok regarding this…He contemplated on what to tell and what not to tell to Theresa, she seems trustworthy but Theresa still with Schicksal nonetheless. He won't want to hand all of information he had to them who could use it to backstab him in the future…

"Ryan?" Theresa asked Ryan once again.

"…Didn't you already knew about them?" Ryan decided to test the waters.

"All we knew is that we got nothing on them, we want to take eyewitness account" Theresa said while folding her arms.

"Then why does it have to be me?" Ryan asked with half closed eyes.

"You're the only one who were involved in every combat that happened on that island. From the base assault, to the rescue mission, to the infiltration and finally the escape attempt…You have more than enough experience too, so your opinion will be accounted for" Theresa stated the reasons.

…Wow, that was on point and Ryan thought that was legitimate reasoning…But he's also in the dark, same as Theresa and everybody else. All he know were the fact that this new 'faction' doesn't like Schicksal that much, safe to say that wouldn't be the last time as their chances encountering these new guys in the future…were high. Ryan decided to tell what Theresa wanted to know…But perhaps he should refrain from few details.

"…Fine…What do you want to know first?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"What kind of faction they could be?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"…Their tactics seemed to employ strong emphasis on versatility, that submarine said it all. Furthermore, their unit seemed to be technologically on par with Schicksal but at the same time didn't afraid to use some generic ones like F-30's…They have deep pockets for sure" Ryan said to Theresa.

"…Did you see any of their operators?" Theresa asked Ryan.

"No" Ryan immediately answered.

"Then how did they operate, according to you?" Theresa further pressed on.

"…Small and elite team, a force of our size would be easily noticeable and these guys disappeared easily like smoke…I can't found any direct link of their existence besides from several corpses, all civilians" Ryan said to Theresa.

"…They killed civilians?" Theresa cocked her eyebrows.

"Didn't seemed to hesitate in doing that too, but I can't be sure without any concrete evidence" Ryan said to Theresa.

"I see…Any other details?" Theresa asked Ryan.

…Theresa stared Ryan directly in the eyes and vice versa, those who averted their gaze will lose the battle. Ryan had decided that he would not tell Theresa about the fact where Mei and him transformed into their Honkai forms to basically eradicate more than half of the town and thousands of Honkai creatures overnight, investigation might be conducted to that island or Mei and Fuuka could talk about this with Theresa…But Ryan won't be the one saying it…He really didn't like talking about this to Schicksal.

"No ma'am, that is all" Ryan said in composed tone.

"…You're free to go Ryan, thank you" Theresa said while smiling.

Ryan wordlessly nodded his head before he walked toward the door, he exited and closed the door. Well, he's glad that Theresa didn't asked about Mei and his transformation…He purposely let that details slip…Five seconds later and that's when all eyes turned toward each other…Siegfried went to the closed door, opened it and peeked his head out for a bit. He saw no one in immediate vicinity before he closed it and locked the door, he turned his head toward Theresa.

"…Sis, this is bad" Siegfried said to Theresa.

"I know…I'm afraid we have to heighten security around Soukai, this academy won't stay safe for long" Theresa said with grim expression.

"The kids just returned…we can't really have them on stand-by now, can't we? I don't want them to face these people…They don't have the experience yet" Cecilia expressed her concern.

"No they won't have to, sister…Perhaps it's time for me to call an old friend…Himeko, Ms. Jill, please take care of the school defenses and deployment strategy in case these people decide to knock on our doors" Theresa said to Himeko and Jill.

"Will do ma'am" "Understood" Jill and Himeko said.

Jill and Himeko exited the room, Victoria cocked her eyebrows on why she wasn't given the same role. That until Theresa brought up the holographic computer terminal from underneath her desk, she turned it on and decided to contact someone.

An unfamiliar icon consist of shark jaw came up on the screen before it connected, the screen shown a room like an office yet there's no lighting. The only light source were that came from the screen, suddenly someone appeared and sit in front of the computer on the other side.

He was a middle aged man, with spiky short blonde hair, green amethyst eyes, grinning while looking at the screen amusedly. Siegfried and Cecilia eyes went wide, their mouths hanged down in surprise and both of them froze on the spot.

Victoria was further confused by the situation, what could've made the two of Second Honkai Impact veterans in front of her froze like they just saw a ghost? But Theresa wasn't, she was smirking like she anticipated this coming.

"…Hai there" The man said while grinning.

"You're a bad joker and you know it Hai, that pun only make me want to punch you!" Theresa replied while smiling.

"Ha! That if you could find me first, Theresa-chan…That being said, it's been a while since you contacted me" Hai said while smiling.

"A month to be exact since then, huh? Yeah, something is about to go down…I'm sending you the details" Theresa said as she sent something to Hai.

"…One glance at the title and I know something went wrong on Operation Dawnbreaker…How is he, Theresa?" Hai asked Theresa.

"Alive and well, he's just too exhausted…I don't want to involve him any further but, he would be involved eventually" Theresa said, frown on her face.

"Yeah, I know…So, you need my help?" Hai asked Theresa.

"Precisely. Soukai itself would need your help, I would appreciate it if you could book a stay for the next two months" Theresa said to Hai.

"Whoa, that's quite a long time! You know I got business to run here?" Hai asked while sneering.

"Hey! I'm paying a lot for this you know!? Just get your cheeky butt over here!" Theresa said while pouting.

"Fine, fine. Let me tell my darling regarding this first…Oh? I just noticed but, I saw two familiar faces there!" Hai said while grinning.

Theresa looked behind her to saw Siegfried and Cecilia stood there still frozen from the shock coming from seeing someone they thought had died long time ago, Siegfried and Cecilia were confused beyond belief…This guy disappeared from the world for years and now he showed up out of the blue like this? No, Cecilia stared at Theresa…Theresa knew him, she knew who he was all this time, she knew he's alive yet she kept silent about it?

"…What the fuck is going on!? How is this possible?!" Siegfried said as he stepped back unconsciously.

"…Theresa…you lied? All this time!?" Cecilia asked in disbelieved tone.

"I have no choice on this matter, Cecilia. The risk is too big" Theresa said while averting her gaze.

"…She have to, my request. A slip of this and everything could crumble down" Hai said while smiling.

"And you! You're alive?! Where the hell were you all this time!?" Siegfried asked while shouting.

"Did you really think I would be killed that easily? I'm not famous for being often under fire like you! But yeah…Been a while Sieg, Lia…The years have been well on you, both of you looked well…I have a lot I want to say, but first…we need to meet" Hai said while smiling somberly.

.

"Whereeeeee the fuck…have you beeeen!?" Rahn asked Ryan.

Ryan wasn't sure whether to cringe, facepalm or sigh at what had his men become when he left them just for short fifteen minutes. The cafeteria were a big mess of Vikings going on a rampage, drinking contest, arm wrestling contest, some just goofed off and some passed out on the table. All of their torso were devoid of any kind of clothing, each got a bottle on their hands…Ryan glanced to the left to saw The Valkyries staring at The Vikings with exasperated faces with meals on their hands.

"…Who's responsible for this…mess?" Ryan asked with half opened eyes.

"I think you know who, Ryan" Sakura said to Ryan.

"Goddamnit Han, what would happen if Victoria knew about this?" Ryan muttered out loud.

"…Hmph, lightweights!" Someone said in mocking manner.

That someone was Igor, who seated on a chair calmly a bit away from them and with a bottle of Gin. He took another chug from the bottle before he noticed Ryan who just casually pushed Rahn away to the floor after he tried to hug him, Ryan walked toward Igor with questioning eyes as he sat in front of him.

"Tovarisch, care for a drink? We got plenty" Igor said while grinning.

"…At this rate, someone had to stay sane in order to drive you all home" Ryan said then sighed.

"Agreed with that…Someone need to teach these guys on how to drink like a Russian, they're gone out of control after just one bottle!" Igor said while staring at The Vikings.

"Yeah well, you're not wrong but that's not the priority here…Alright, pack it up! We're going home!" Ryan said to The Vikings.

The atmosphere suddenly turned chilly as seven Vikings stopped whatever they were doing and stared at Ryan with deadpan stare, he squinted his eyes because he sensed something was about to happen. Ryan nodded his head to the girls and pointed the exit with his left thumb, The Valkyries were confused but they knew they won't like it if they continued to be involved. Slowly, The Valkyries made their way out with some like Kiana, Kallen, Mei and Sakura told Ryan to be careful on whatever he's going to do.

The Vikings except for Igor stood up and lined themselves against Ryan who calmly took off his upper clothes, showing his toned body and clearly gave the others a view on how was the mechanical hand connected to his biological one. He controlled his breath as he prepared himself, these people were quite rowdy when they were drunk.

"…Alright, I'll give you one last chance to stand down and come home quietly" Ryan said calmly.

"…Screw you, asshole! We'll do what we want!" Gin shouted at Ryan.

"…Here we go again" Ryan muttered.

Ryan prepared himself to fight seven Vikings at once, the school staff better not found out about this since it'll be a mess to explain. Ryan threw all defenses out of the window as he charged against seven Vikings who got caught off guard and launched spinning kick which hit Michael straight in the face and knocked him out instantly, Gin and Han went in to attack and a big fight ensued as Ryan valiantly fought despite being outnumbered six to one. All that while Igor watched, chuckling, with alcohol on his hand and The Valkyries who were secretly watching from the entrance…

"…What kind of nonsense is this?" Kallen asked out loud.

"No idea, but eh…boys" Kiana said as she shrugged.

"Yeah, boys…Really, these guys could be such weirdoes at times" Sakura said.

"I think that's the part of the charm, now let's go home…I'm sure Ryan-kun could solve this with no problem" Mei said as she walked away.

Well Mei was wrong because five seconds after the girls left, Ryan got an uppercut landed directly on his jaw and he fell down to the floor. Ryan tried to get back up, but Agus and Rahn held him down, with Han and Gin carrying fully loaded bottles of alcohol each on their hands.

.

"…Urgh"

…Ryan woke up with a painful headache, sore body and groaning stomach. His eyes remained shut and his arms flail around to find something around him for support…God! His head was thumping like an Orc going into war while beating their war drums but instead of a drum it was his head! His eyes were too heavy to open and he lethargically moved his limbs. Ryan went and grabbed whatever it was on his right.

"R-Ryan-kun that's my, Ahn!" Someone said…

Ryan grabbed whatever the thing he managed to get a hold of, he then copped a feel then he heard soft moaning sound…Hmm, wait. This feeling of softness, springiness and roundness...That soft moan too, it belonged to a woman…Connecting the dots together, Ryan eyes went open wide due to the combination of realization and shock.

"Hnn…R-Ryan-kun, please let go!" Someone said again.

Moving his eyes fearfully to the right, he got a glimpse on a view that gave him mixed feelings…Well, he's glad that he's on his bedroom with the familiar looking white ceiling and blue walls. What made him felt apprehension was the fact that there's someone on his bed side, she was Mei Raiden and the fact that his right mechanical hand extended toward her…chest region and latched on her right boob, he squeezed a bit which resulted Mei closed her eyes shut, whimpering, with blush decorating her cheeks and squirming…Aw shit!

"S-S-Sorry! That wasn't on purpose!" Ryan said as he sat up.

"M-Mou! Ryan-kun! That wasn't nice! You can't just grope a girl like that!" Mei said while pouting.

"It's an accident!" Ryan said to Mei.

"Hah…Alright, I'll let you go this time" Mei said to Ryan.

"Thanks" Ryan said while smiling.

Just his luck, Ryan supposed God was a massive weeb because this was exactly how a cliché supposed to happen…This always happened to him recently and he shuddered of the thought this would happen even more in the future. Mei stared at Ryan as the said man held his head who were aching in pain, he even struggled not to lay down again on his bed.

"How do you feel, by the way?" Mei asked Ryan.

"…Like being rammed by a truck" Ryan answered while grumbling.

"Is that so…Well, here something to ease your discomfort" Mei said to Ryan.

Mei took a glass of water and some medicine from the night stand beside her, she then handed it to Ryan who quickly drank it. Ryan noticed that he wore crimson T-shirt and black pants…Wait, what the hell happened? He got around…Ryan looked at the clock on the night stand, fourteen hours gap of memories! How did he changed into this clothes? How the hell his skin was squeaky clean? His hair silky soft? Ryan stared at Mei who wore cream sweater and blue skirt on his right, he had a lot of questions!

"…Mei, I have a lot I want to ask" Ryan said to Mei.

"As much I'd like to help you, I think I'm not suited to explain on what happened yesterday" Mei said while smiling awkwardly.

"…Huh, then who's the one I could ask?" Ryan asked Mei.

"But before we got to that, I think you need to go wash your face first" Mei said as she pointed at Ryan's face.

Ryan shrugged as he got off the bed, he stretched his limbs again like a cat after a good nap. Mei took the glass and the medicine before she exited Ryan's bedroom, Ryan followed suit and he saw his living room…So this was his real apartment. How did Mei managed to enter here? Ryan had a theory…Let's just say that the past him fucked up so bad that he required her help to get home…Did that also meant that Mei was the one that bathed him? Because the last thing he remember, Ryan supposed to be still wearing his mission clothes!

"…How do you get in here, Mei?" Ryan asked Mei.

"Your key, of course. I got a little creative by checking the likely spot you may use to hide a spare key" Mei said as she sat on the sofa.

"Is that so…How am I already squeaky clean? With my clothes changed?" Ryan further asked.

"Now that…you could get the answer later" Mei said while smiling awkwardly.

"…Seriously what happened yesterday? Now I'm curious as hell!" Ryan said as he entered the bathroom.

Ryan turned on the faucet then let the water filled the basin first, he stared at his reflection in the mirror…His eyes looked sharp as ever, the wound caused by James already started to heal and Ryan noticed he had stubbles on his lower face…Guess he forgot to shave huh. Ryan proceed to brushed his teeth before he took a razor, applied shaving cream on his lower face and proceed to shaved. Washed his face carefully since he won't want to put water on his wound, Ryan dried his face and got out of the bathroom.

"How do I look?" Ryan asked Mei while grinning.

Mei who was seated on the sofa looked at Ryan, she didn't have any complaints…A little secret, Mei was actually observing Ryan's face before he woke up. She carefully inspected every nook and cranny, stared at the wound on his face and even carefully caressed his jaw which had stubbles…All that while she smiled softly, to her friend who stood beside her while fighting for their life yesterday. The handsome young man in front of her, she hoped that they could get along better in the future…

"Looking good" Mei said while smiling.

"Nice…So, can I get the answers now?" Ryan asked Mei.

"Sure. Let's go to Kallen's and Sakura's Apartment, we could find your answers there" Mei said as she stood up.

Wordlessly, Ryan decided to follow Mei as they exited his apartment and entered to the apartment next to him. Mei opened the door and Ryan followed her through, there he found the fact that the apartment were jam packed…Sakura wore white blouse and pink skirt was drinking tea on the dining table, Kallen wore black camisole and blue short pants sat on the sofa while watching TV alongside Bronya who wore black T-shirt with yellow skirt. Fuuka wore sleeveless white shirt and jeans while seated in front of Sakura, Kiana with bandaged head wearing orange and white hoodie with black skirt was on the balcony with Himeko who wore grey shirt and jeans.

"I brought him here" Mei simply announced.

"Ah there you are!" Himeko said as she approached Ryan with Kiana.

"I was about to come and get you if Mei-senpai failed to woke you up" Kiana said to Ryan.

"Yeah, luckily she did managed, Kiana…So, uhm…Himeko-san? Mind explaining while you're here?" Ryan asked Himeko.

"What? About yesterday? Alright…I'd recommend you to sit down first, have a drink of painkiller for that headache and prepare your heart, I guess" Himeko said to Ryan.

"…I don't like where this is going" Ryan muttered with bitter smile.

Regardless, Ryan proceed to sat beside Sakura who awkwardly greeted him and handed him a jar filled with chocolate cookies…What's up with that? Ryan nodded in appreciation as he started eating the snack, Himeko sat in front of him with Fuuka beside her who stared at Ryan with what appeared to be mix of apprehension and pity? Why? Was something really bad happened yesterday and Ryan failed to stop it? Was he involved in something dangerous? He lost fourteen hour of his life after all!

"So, what do you want to know?" Himeko asked Ryan.

"Every goddamn thing, from the start. The last thing I remember was the fact that I entered the cafeteria" Ryan said to Himeko.

"Then I need you to listen carefully…You got your ass handed to you after trying to subdue seven Vikings who ganged on you in a cheap recreation of a bar fight" Himeko explained.

"…Was Rahn who did it?" Ryan asked with half closed eyes.

"How did you know?" Himeko asked with cocked eyebrows.

It's not a surprise to Ryan if Rahn managed to best him in close quarter combat, that man was agile, he hit hard and won't spare any excuses to take down his opponents. Ryan was aware regarding the fact that every time he spar with Rahn on close quarter combat training, he need to stay focused or Rahn would immediately bested him. He's that good, so Ryan wasn't surprised.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out, so…Next?" Ryan said while shrugging.

"You're a heavyweight drinker aren't you?" Himeko asked Ryan.

"…Some people do say so" Ryan said, confidently.

"It didn't work last night after four bottles of Vodka, even Igor-san was impressed at you for not dying on the spot yesterday" Himeko said while sneering.

Holy shit, four bottles? He's glad he didn't woke up strapped to the bed with IV drip on the medical wing! He had to struggle with three bottles and he actually broke that limit yesterday? Yeah, no wonder he felt like shit when he woke up! Not going to lie, that was impressive feat but to think he achieved that by being forced to drink didn't really gave him any sense of accomplishment.

"…I got a bad feeling about the next part" Ryan said out loud.

"For the right reason, you kind of lost your mind there…What happened next was the fact you crashed into girls dormitory area while topless, so the student council arrived to manhandle you guys" Himeko said while she kept sneering.

"…You're a troublesome fella when you're drunk" Fuuka commented with a frown on her lips.

"Did I hit you? Sorry if I do" Ryan said while frowning too.

"No, but you kissed our Student Council President while commenting that 'she's a hot babe'" Fuuka dropped the bomb…

"…Clair?" Ryan asked while grimacing.

"Clair-san" Fuuka clarified while nodding her head.

"On the cheek?" Ryan asked further.

"No…On the lips" Fuuka said as she squinted her eyes.

"What? Fuck…What happened next?" Ryan asked, dreading his fate already.

"You got slapped hard, hit the wall and lost consciousness" Fuuka said to Ryan.

Holy fucking shit, it was at this moment that Ryan knew he fucked up real bad yesterday…Alright, going in to the girls dormitory without permission itself could warrant a beat down from the security team on the campus. He went in half naked which should have destroyed his reputation, just a month after he enrolled. Student Council went down to manhandle him, and he had the audacity to kissed Clair…His coworker and student council president. Fuck me, Ryan thought.

"…Of course that would be the respond…How do you explain how I got back, clean and in new pair of clothes and underpants?" Ryan asked Fuuka.

"That…might be a bit hard to explain" Fuuka said as she looked at Sakura.

"…It was Kallen and I who took you back here, Ryan" Sakura said from Ryan's side.

"So y-you're the one who bathe me?!" Ryan asked Sakura immediately.

"W-W-We had to!" Sakura said while stammering.

"And I made sure you stay put so its fine, nothing happened!" Kallen said from the side.

No! NO! That's not fine! That's not fine at all for Ryan! The said man's cheeks were red as he facepalmed and slumped on the table…These girls saw it, his Desert Eagle and two grenades! There's a possibility they touched it too when they bathe him so…God, Ryan hoped his body didn't think on its own and got an erection when Sakura washed his groin! God that would be embarrassing! But to think they also saw his flaccid dick made it even worse! Both of these situation was a nightmare!

"Just to make sure…Nothing really happened when you bathed me, right?" Ryan asked as he averted his gaze.

"…Now that I think about it, I think you got a boner when Sakura started caressing you" Kallen commented nonchalantly.

…There's five second silence before everyone stared back at Kallen who blurted it out nonchalantly, Himeko looked intrigued, Kiana's cheeks were red, Mei closed her mouth with her hand to hide her blushing face, Sakura chocked on her tea as she remembered what she did yesterday, Bronya face remained impassive though her cheeks went red a bit and Fuuka looked at Kallen with a bit of uncomfortable look on her face. All of that while Ryan stared at Kallen with his mouth agape…

""""""HUH?!"""""" Ryan, Himeko, Kiana, Mei and Fuuka said at the same time.

"Yeah, it's long and big too!" Kallen said while smiling.

"You touched my desert eagle?!" Ryan blurted as his hand covered his crotch.

"Well I had to! Sakura almost fainted when she saw it getting bigger, we had to get you clean so I was the one who did it…Come to think of it, that's the first time I've touched a penis…" Kallen said as she rubbed her chin.

Ryan looked at Kallen and he honestly thought that Kallen was one tough girl or a shameless one! She did so without any hint of embarrassment! She seemed she had changed for the past month! What made her so composed like that? Especially regarding this kind of matter! The fact she didn't saw him as a man? That somehow hurt his feelings though! Wait, jumping on conclusion could help sometimes but most of the time it will only worsen everything…Better clarify that when he could talk with Kallen privately.

"Wait, how big is he!?" Kiana asked with pure curiosity on her eyes.

"Kiana-chan, have some modesty!" Mei said while blushing.

"Safe to say I needed two hands" Kallen said with serious face.

"Whoa…A lot of things changed in ten years! But, that big? Those things only exist in hentai!" Kiana exclaimed while blushing.

"…And how did you know that?" Himeko muttered her question.

"Kallen-san! How can you not feel embarrassed about this!?" Mei asked Kallen.

"Why would I be? It's the same as taking care of sick person?" Kallen asked Mei while tilting her head to the right.

"Yes but he's a man! Dear Kami!" Mei said in exasperation.

"But he's a comrade of mine, I should help if he's in trouble. It's no big deal" Kallen said while smiling.

"It's a big deal and that's not the point, Kallen-san!" Mei said to Kallen.

"Did you really touched it, Sakura?" Kiana asked curiously.

"N-N-No! I-I only peeked…a bit! That's the first time, I ever see something like that!" Sakura said with blushing face.

"Sheesh, you're quite a sheltered girl!" Kiana said with cocked eyebrows.

"I-I-I can't help it alright!? That's just how my upbringing was!" Sakura said with blushing face.

"…This is getting awkward" Fuuka commented.

"…Ryan was probably the descendant of an adult game protagonist" Bronya also commented.

"Can't argue with that logic" Kiana said to Bronya.

"Can we stop talking about my dick!? Please!" Ryan shouted in embarrassment.

One word that could described on what happened next would be awkward. Ryan sat without daring to looked at Kallen or Sakura, Kallen sat while Kiana still bombarded her with questions, Mei and Sakura looked exasperated as they got involved with Kallen and Kiana, Bronya kept watching the TV but she occasionally sneaked a glance at the only male in the room, Fuuka tried to distracted herself with her phone to forgot about the things she heard few minutes ago and Himeko still stared at Ryan with curious gaze.

"…I hope you're not a quick shooter with the gun on your pants. Not as quick as how you could empty an entire M1911H eight rounds magazine under three seconds, right? The size better not only for show!" Himeko asked Ryan with sly grin.

"…OH COME ON!" Ryan further shouted.

.

Sakura intended to kept going with a plan of hers when they stuck during the failed Operation Dawnbreaker, she intend to cook a feast and that's what they shall do. Kallen and Ryan went to the nearby convenience store near their apartment that both frequently visited to shop for the ingredients, the cashier, a college student working part time there often meet with both of them was currently on the job. But he's especially surprised today since both of them came together to this convenience store…on school hours! What's this? Did they really ditched school to go on a date?! He got so many questions, but calling them out would probably interrupt their moments so maybe he'll ask when they got to the counter.

The store was empty save for the three of them so he could watch Ryan and Kallen as they went from aisle to aisle, picking up ingredients, miscellaneous items and what appears to be…beer? Huh, classic Ryan he supposed, that's what he often came here for anyway. But before he could write it off, he saw Kallen who looked annoyed at him before she lectured him about something with several words like 'accidents', 'last night' and 'restrain' being thrown at him. Then, she took the beer cans, stuffed it back to the large refrigerator and put several cartons of orange juice on Ryan's hands…

The cashier thought Ryan would argue with Kallen, but all he did was smiling awkwardly as he relented? Man! That guy was powerless against Kallen? Well, well, this was something he just knew now. Oh, both of them were heading toward him. They put their groceries to the cashier desk and he proceeded to scanned the items they carried…Meats, vegetables, flour, bits of spices…Hell, this was just common foodstuff…Did he thought this wrong?

"It's the first time I see you two going here together, what's this? Skipping school scheme?" The cashier asked while smiling a bit.

"Nah, just few days off" Kallen said as she put things on the cashier.

"Private High School have it good eh?" The cashier commented.

"You didn't go to class either, Ken" Ryan said to Ken.

"College student's schedule is flexible so ha! Anyway, these are assload of things. What do you guys planning on doing?" Ken asked to the both of them.

"A little celebration, for our little success and failure" Ryan said while smiling bitterly.

"Is that so…I'd recommend a beer for this though, not orange juice" Ken said while sneering.

"No, I've seen what happened when Ryan went overboard. We're taking the safe route this time" Kallen said as she glared at Ryan.

"Yeeaaahhhh…There you have it Ken" Ryan said as he cringed.

"…Oh wait! I forgot to get the chips Bronya requested!" Kallen said as her eyes widens.

"Go get it then…In the meantime" Ryan said.

Ryan's right hand moved toward bubble gum section on the aisle, just as he about to get grape flavored gum Kallen called him if he wanted some potato chips. Ryan looked back at Kallen while saying that he won't need it, but that resulted in his hand went toward another section of the aisle. He took two package and dropped it beside the groceries while still talking with Kallen. Ken however, saw what Ryan dropped on the counter…ultra-thin, 0.01cm, super durable, large size and high quality condoms…Two packages!

Ken's mouth went agape as his eyes widened in shock and awe…What's this!? Did this mean both of them had 'that' kind of relationship? Quite bold for high school students! But eh, at least they played it safe. Ken shrugged as he scanned the condoms and put it on the plastic bags, seconds later Kallen arrived and brought the potato chips. All in all, they paid the groceries and they left the store. All the while Ken smiled awkwardly, though both Ryan and Kallen didn't noticed that.

Making their way back should be easy, were it not for the sudden downpour from grey clouds that came out of nowhere. Yeah, they should've known that on earth as chaotic as theirs then the weather prediction was something you shouldn't trust at all! Kallen and Ryan took shelter from the heavy rain on a small gazebo in the nearby park, luckily they weren't drenched or it could become another problem for them now.

"This sucks" Ryan muttered.

"Yeah…" Kallen somberly replied.

"…How long do you think this rain will last?" Ryan absent mindedly asked.

"No idea…But at the slightest chance of the rain easing up, we're booking it" Kallen said.

"Sound plan, let's do that" Ryan nodded his head.

The both of them sat in awkward silence…Well its mostly Ryan because of what happened this morning, seriously what kind of man that didn't felt awkward after a revelation like that? But Ryan was done being meek as he's a real man and he needed answers, Kallen didn't seemed uncomfortable about this too so he better dashed the problem so it could be resolved as soon as possible.

"Kallen…You didn't feel anything?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Hmm? About what?" Kallen curiously asked back.

"You know, last night" Ryan answered.

"Ah…that" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Yeah" Ryan said while nodding his head.

"Of course I felt embarrassed Ryan, but only for short while. The rest of that? Probably because curiosity took over so I didn't really felt embarrassed" Kallen said to Ryan.

"…I kind of wondered if you didn't saw me as a man, Kallen" Ryan somberly said to Kallen.

"What made you think like that?" Kallen cocked her eyebrows.

"The way you remained composed even when talking about these kind of things back on your apartment, I kind of thought of that" Ryan said as he averted his gaze.

…Kallen might not knew much about boys but she knew at least the fact that most boys were quite insecure about their physical appearance, she can thank internet for that one. Kallen thought that she didn't shown any meaningful reaction or embarrassment could be interpreted that his figure wasn't appealing at all, actually it's the opposite as Kallen do find his figure appealing…She just didn't showed it much.

"…Ryan, you're a good man and what I did last night was purely out of my conscience to help you. You helped a lot during Operation Dawnbreaker, I would felt unsatisfied if couldn't return the favor…It's not like I'm not embarrassed, I just choose not to thought too much about what I've did" Kallen said with serious expression.

"I'm a guy you know?" Ryan asked while smiling somberly.

"And so what? That doesn't matter, you're a comrade of mine. If you're in trouble I would be glad to help you out, that's what comrades in arms do" Kallen said to Ryan.

Kallen was really thankful for what he and his men did days ago. They done a lot for their task force that resulted they didn't have anyone killed during mission, they managed to escape through a perilous situation and they also managed to return home despite being under heavy attack from an unknown enemy…That itself already warranted lots of good marks on Kallen's judgment book, so when she saw how Ryan needed help she couldn't help herself to offer hers…That's just how she was.

"…You're too good sometimes, Kallen. Most girls wouldn't go that far for their guy friend" Ryan said while smiling.

"Well most girls aren't like me so there you go!" Kallen answered while grinning.

"Ahahahaha…Yeah, you're right…Thank you, I never got the chance to say it back then" Ryan said sincerely.

"No problem Ryan, glad I could help" Kallen answered while smiling.

"If you ever stuck on a problem in the future, don't hesitate to tell me alright? I'll do the same" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Does bathing me while naked if I drank too much also counts?" Kallen asked while smiling.

"…I'll…close my eyes and do my best" Ryan answered as he averted his gaze.

"Ahahahahaha, will do then" Kallen said while grinning.

The rain eased up and both of them made a mad dash back toward their apartment, with renewed bonds between the both of them. Both Kallen and Ryan entered the apartment after sprinting with bags of groceries on their hands, they brought the grocery bags to the kitchen counter then Kallen went to the couch and rested her body.

Ryan rummaged through the grocery bag in search of the gum package, but what he got was another kind of gum instead as Ryan's jaw dropped and his eyes widened at the sight of condom package on his right hand…As everyone might know, God took this opportunity to play its favorite prank because that's when Kiana went inside the kitchen.

"Huh? Wait, that is-"

Ryan went as swift as he could putting his left hand on Kiana's lips, Kiana eyes went wide and her cheeks flushed red a bit at the close proximity between her and Ryan. His eyes looked in a mix of seriousness and panicked state, Ryan held his right index finger on his hand toward his lips as a signal to stay quiet and after Kiana nodded Ryan let go of her. Ryan searched for another packaging and he founded another one, Ryan quickly took the receipt on the bag, crumpled it then tossed it into the trash can.

"This is an accident" Ryan said to Kiana.

"How come? You mean you took two condom packages in complete accident? How does that work?" Kiana asked, she looked unconvinced.

"Can't you believe the fact that the convenience store near your house put bubblegum and condom package near each other? I didn't even look when I went to grab one!" Ryan said to Kiana.

"…How much careless can you get?" Kiana asked while folding her arms.

"Hopefully no more than letting you saw this as a misunderstanding" Ryan said while frowning.

"Fine, I'll believe you…So, what are you going to do with that?" Kiana asked further.

"…I honestly don't know…But I think storing one wouldn't do any harm" Ryan said while shrugging.

"You're planning on having sex?!" Kiana asked, with shocked face.

"I don't have that kind of plan! Maybe someone will need it someday, better kept some since I can't return these alright?" Ryan argued.

"…" Kiana stared at Ryan unconvincingly.

"…Fine, what can I do so you could trust me?" Ryan said as he dropped his shoulder.

"Just throw it away if you don't planning on doing anything!" Kiana said to Ryan.

"If that's what make you feel better" Ryan shrugged.

"Good" Kiana said to Ryan.

Kiana groaned internally as Ryan exited the apartment to throw the condoms away, this was harder than she thought. She's definitely happy that she's reunited with him but both of them were teenagers now, they can't return to the time when they were kids again as puberty did caused them to see each other in different light now…Kiana did caught Ryan checking out Mei, Kallen, Sakura or even herself sometimes in class or recess. It's good to know he do have that kind of interest…But not knowing who was his object of affection really did made her anxious sometimes.

…Hours later, Mei and Sakura were done with the cooking, Fuuka and Kallen done with the snacks while Himeko, Kiana and Bronya set the tables and chairs. Ryan said he will head back toward his apartment for a bit and was stunned inside his apartment as he saw Hai messing with his PC. Ryan really tempted to pull out his M1911H but figured that would not end well, so Ryan fake coughed to get Hai's attention.

"Ah there you are, I was wondering where you go!" Hai said while smiling.

"You know I'm literally just next door?" Ryan asked Hai.

"Is that so? My bad for not noticing" Hai said while smiling.

"And what are you doing with my computer?" Ryan asked Hai again.

"Just a bit of online shopping, I need several things. Don't worry, the stuff I bought will not be sent here" Hai said as he typed further.

Ryan wasn't exactly comfortable with a stranger using his computer, there's a lot of things on that computer that he won't want the others to find about…What? It's not like he have eighty gigabytes worth of porn on that hard drive of his, that's not the case. His research and sensitive files were there, so he kept close eye on Hai as he browse through Amazon ordering some kind of…Coffee maker? Why the hell this guy want with a coffee maker? Those things could be bought on the nearest department store!

"It better…So, what do you want?" Ryan asked Hai.

"Sheesh son, are you always been blunt like this?" Hai stared at Ryan while squinting his eyes.

"Not always, just to people who didn't respect privacy" Ryan answered with monotone voice.

"Err good point…Anyway, did you figured it out?" Hai asked Ryan.

"…Being vague won't help you" Ryan said while he sat on the sofa.

"Alright, I'll ask directly. Who do you think I worked for?" Hai asked Ryan.

"Schicksal" Ryan simply answered.

"Beep, you're wrong…I worked for no one, but I do have connection within Schicksal. Ryan Taurus, first of all let me commend you for surviving Operation Dawnbreaker!" Hai said as he spun the office chair he's on.

"…And?" Ryan cocked his eyebrows.

"Wait. No 'thanks'?" Hai squinted his eyes.

"You know I will participate AND survive that, didn't you?" Ryan said as he folded his arms.

"…Huh, sharp! Or was that just a lucky guess?" Hai asked while grinning.

"Hai, get to the point will you? The girls are waiting for me next door!" Ryan said in annoyed tone.

Ryan noted this just now, Hai was not the type that will said what he wanted straight…Depending on the situation it could be advantageous if he have to buy some time, but this was annoying as fuck right now when the girls next door were waiting for him…Hai sighed while looking at Ryan, well Ryan was quite the straight forward person when concerning business. Hai thought that Ryan would require some education in 'how to lengthen a conversation before saying the goddamn point', it'll be handy for him in the future.

"Spoilsport! At least promise me a chat session sometimes in the future!" Hai said to Ryan.

"If you promise to knock the door or message me first like a civilized person, then fine" Ryan said with half opened eyes.

"Alright! I promise!" Hai said as he shrugged.

"Good…" Ryan said as he leaned on the sofa.

"With that out of the way, here" Hai said to Ryan.

Hai took something out from his jacket pocket and threw it toward Ryan which he caught with his mechanical right hand, Ryan checked out the item which was a white hard disk. What's this? Ryan didn't have the slightest clue on what was inside the hard disk…What would it contain? Must've been some kind of information that Hai wished to share with him…

"This?" Ryan asked Hai.

"Info about Howard, you might want to know who you're dealing with" Hai said while smiling a bit.

"…Content?" Ryan asked Hai again.

"Basic info, guard strength, home base, all the essential stuff to plan for his assassination" Hai listed off the content while smiling.

"Aren't you suppose to give this to Saint Freya's Headmistress?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"She already had a copy, now this belongs to you…You're about to head into a shitshow, you'll want all of your men to return alive right? With this, you can learn and plan the operation anytime you like" Hai said to Ryan.

…This was the loophole he looked for, did Hai said that on purpose or was that pure slip of the tongue? But now he knew one thing…Theresa one way or another knew Hai. It made sense now if Theresa was Hai's link inside Schicksal, that would explain how Hai knew about this assassination op to begin with and knew about Operation Dawnbreaker.

…Ryan was already wary of Hai, but now the level just escalated with this small revelation…What was this guy after? What was his relationship with Theresa? So many questions…The guy in front of Ryan was surrounded in thick veil of mystery, he's dealing with the unknown right now…

"Convenient…what do you ask in return?" Ryan asked Hai while fiddling with the hard disk.

"The same thing as before, just bring me that journal and I'll upheld my end of bargain. This serve to sweeten the pot, just to make things easier" Hai said to Ryan as he returned to typing.

"You sacrificed much for this…What are you after Hai?" Ryan said while narrowing his eyes.

See? This what made him suspicious! Hai basically gave something invaluable that would fetch for a high price on the black market, Hai didn't even knew Ryan that well so how come he's this trusting toward him? Something doesn't add up, giving this many offer and help to sweeten the pot?

Anyone who ever had to deal with business knew that when someone made too many advantageous offering for the opposing party would earned them instant suspicion…There's just no way they're willing to sacrifice so much for something that won't guarantee a return of their investment with equal value.

"Oh? Me? Simple, peace" Hai answered.

"…And you supposed whatever content in Howard's journal will get you that?" Ryan asked again.

"No, but it would be a step closer…" Hai answered while smirking.

…Ryan couldn't saw Hai's face as he faced away from him but something in his tone made him squinted his eyes further, Hai definitely held something back from him…But Ryan thought that if he got the journal from Howard's hands, then he would also got the privilege to look or even copy whatever shit that journal had inside.

…He would found out why would Hai wanted this journal so bad, even willing to sacrifice much resources to make sure The Viking's assault could go on without a hitch…Ryan just have to be patient for now. Hai was done using Ryan's PC as he raised himself from the chair, facing Ryan in the process.

"Fine…Thanks for this" Ryan said as he held the hard disk.

"You're welcome son! This would be the start of beautiful partnership! Oh right, I have an appointment today! A meeting with a gorgeous Valkyrie, too bad she might be pissed at me! Adieu!" Hai said while grinning and a wink.

Just like before, Hai dashed out through the balcony instead of the main door before he jumped down without any hint of hesitation. Just like before, Ryan followed him out and looked down and saw no evidence of a someone just made suicidal jump from eleventh floor…How the fuck that man did that kind of stunt!? Ryan was puzzled, Hai was certainly good at imitating Batman!

"…Crazy fuck, why can't he use the door like a normal person? Huh?" Ryan muttered to himself.

"What took you so long, Ryan!?" Kiana asked suddenly.

Ryan looked to the left side and saw Kiana was leaning on Sakura and Kallen's apartment balcony railings with a can of soda on her hand, she looked toward Ryan who stared at her with several question mark popping around his head figuratively.

"You didn't see a man jumped down from here!?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"What are you talking about!? No one committed suicide just now!" Kiana answered.

"Wha? But..." Ryan was so damn confused.

"Whatever, just get back here! We can't start without you!" Kiana said to Ryan.

"…Alright!" Ryan said to Kiana.

Ryan entered Kallen and Sakura's apartment and seated himself in the arranged tables and chairs, everyone also sat as Mei, Kallen, Fuuka and Sakura brought the cooked dishes to the dining table. Meatloaf, Salad, Onigiri, Eggrolls and bunch other stuff that Ryan sure had fuckton of calories…He didn't know whether to grin or cringe at the thought of having to finish all of this with the others. Everyone took their glass filled with orange juice and Himeko cleared her throat before her speech, everyone immediately paid attention toward her.

"Well. It's been more than a month since school started, you guys surely gotten used to it. I just want to say that whatever happens in the future, know that we'll go through them no matter what. Our success, failure, all would be important lessons and memory for our future…A toast for our successes and failures!" Himeko said while smiling.

"""""""Cheers!""""""" Everyone said before downing the glass.

"Eat up everyone! Mei and I want to see those plates clean!" Sakura said while smiling.

"Oh that wouldn't be a problem!" Kiana said while grinning.

"I might want to increase my jogging distance after all of this" Fuuka said.

"Agreed, this one meal looked it could put on a kilogram on my figure" Kallen said while smiling.

"Bronya, your portion seemed a bit few! Come on, add up!" Himeko said.

"…Bronya understood. Bronya might add several more meatloaf" Bronya said.

"I recommend the eggrolls, Bronya. A good dip in the sauce will blow your tongue" Sakura said.

"Did Sakura made that?" Bronya asked Sakura.

"I am, I can guarantee the taste" Sakura said.

"Oh my Ryan-kun, you too need to add a bit more to your portion!" Mei said.

"Nah, I'm perfectly fine with this for now. I'll get more of the food later" Ryan said.

"We need to keep an eye on him Mei-senpai, can't let him drink today!" Kiana said.

"Hey now! You think I'm a drunkard with alcohol addiction?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"Yeah in fact I do! Got a problem with that!?" Kiana said while squinting her eyes.

"Ouch…" Ryan said while cringing.

"I think that's a fact that everyone now knew, Ryan" Kallen said from the side.

"…Just because of single accident, damnit" Ryan muttered.

"What do you say about a drinking contest, Ryan? Surely you're the worthy opponent I'm looking all this time" Himeko said while smirking.

"Tempting, sometime in the future?" Ryan asked back.

"Will do~" Himeko said while smiling.

"And when that happens, it better be here as it would be easier for you two" Fuuka said.

"Oh come on, I'm not that lightweight" Ryan said while sneering.

The feast continued until the afternoon, that's where things got stale and they need to spice the atmosphere up with few games. A party like this without some games would be a blasphemy at the highest order, Kiana proposed to a truth or dare game which immediately earned a comment from Ryan.

"Truth or dare? With me as the only guy? I can smell a disaster before it even happens" Ryan said with half closed eyes.

"You got a better idea?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"Yeah, Super Smash Brothers Ultimate! We got more than enough players!" Ryan said to Kiana.

"Bronya agreed with Ryan's suggestions" Bronya said.

"See? Even Bronya agreed with me!" Ryan said while grinning.

"That's because the two of you were game addicts!" Kiana argued.

"…Those two fight like a married couple" Himeko murmured as she stared at the two.

"Alright! Card games! We'll settle with that!" Mei said, breaking the argument.

""Card games?"" Ryan and Kiana asked.

"I think all of you knew at least on how to play Old Maid, am I correct? Then let's get it on" Mei said while smiling.

"Okay, that sounds good" Ryan said.

"Fine, I suppose that could works too" Kiana said.

Kallen got the cards and everyone spread around the table with cards on their hands, unfortunately Ryan did suck at this game because of how well the girls around him put on their poker faces! Ryan had to rely on his luck which was at shit tier to begin with, that unsurprisingly resulted with him losing the game quite easily…Oh well, losing can't be that bad right?

"Alright, punishment time!" Kiana suddenly said.

"…Wait what?!" Ryan stared at Kiana.

"Won't be fun without punishment, don't you guys think so too? I won first so I'll get to ask questions" Kiana asked while grinning.

"Oh yeah!" "That make sense!" "It'll spice things up!" Kallen, Sakura and Fuuka said.

"…This game is one hell of a trap!" Ryan commented.

"No way to run, Ryan! So, confession or challenge?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"It's just truth or dare in the end!" Ryan said with horror stricken face.

"Well the loser doesn't get a say in this! Come on, pick one!" Kiana said while grinning.

"Fine, confession!" Ryan said.

…That was not the smartest move in a game where your opponents were all girls! Ryan dreaded his choices as soon he said that, Kiana was grinning from ear to ear with this option so Ryan knew he royally fucked up this one bad! Please don't ask a question where it could end his social life even further than the event yesterday did to him!

"…Are you dating anyone in middle school?" Kiana asked with serious expression.

"No" Ryan simply said.

"…Wait, really?!" Kiana looked shocked.

"That's the truth alright? I spend more days in clubs and hanging out comparing to dating" Ryan said while shrugging.

"Huh…Next round. Let's get it on!" Kiana said.

The next round begun without a hitch and this time Ryan survived the onslaught with Bronya being the receiving end of the questions, it went on for a bit and at first the questions seemed innocent enough for teenagers like them…That until Himeko spiced things up while asking Ryan that successfully made the girls around them blush.

"Boob lover or ass man?" Himeko asked curiously.

"I'm a man with taste, I love both" Ryan said with serious expression.

"Nonsense, everyone belongs to a single faction" Himeko said with serious expression.

"What if I say that there's a third faction which loved both?" Ryan said with serious expression.

"I still believe that as bullshit" Himeko said with serious expression.

"First time for everything, I'm creating a new faction" Ryan said with serious expression.

That was the trigger and the next question thrown around became more shameless as the round progressed, one question from Kiana even left Sakura with flaming blush on her cheeks. All this time Ryan haven't got the chance but the next round he got to be the one who will ask the questions, he grinned maliciously at the thought of who his victim going to be. His grin did made the girls sweat in apprehension, they wouldn't want to lose this one!

"Alright…confession or challenge, Sakura?" Ryan said while smirking like a devil.

"Why do you guys kept picking on me?!" Sakura asked while frowning.

"Because you lose?" Ryan said the cold hard truth.

"Fine…confession" Sakura said in low tone.

Sakura was frowning and looking so insecure that Ryan blushed a bit at how cute Sakura was while looking like that! Ryan already had a diabolical question to ask but it seems he didn't have the heart to actually ask it to a girl, Sakura even successfully persuaded him not to go through with his plans with how she looked…Damn, girls were scary.

"Alright, I'll keep it in moderation. Who's your first kiss?" Ryan asked Sakura.

"You called that moderation?! I can't even imagine what you would ask if you didn't!" Fuuka commented.

"No one! I haven't even done that!" Sakura simply answered.

"Is that so…Oh well" Ryan said while shrugging.

"Urgh…I can't take it anymore! Ryan! Prepare yourself! I'll get my revenge!" Sakura said as her eyes narrowed.

But God is fair and that's the reason why Sakura was the one who got to ask the question next and Ryan was the one who lose again, Sakura looked at Ryan with her eyes so devoid of light she actually managed to cause Ryan to whimper for a bit at how scary she looked with her yandere vibe. Sakura was not the type to get revenge, but actually getting the chance and her victim looked so scared gave her sense of…bliss.

"Oh man…Revenge is sweet and best served cold" Kiana said while grinning.

"Revenge isn't ice cream Kiana, but I got your point" Kallen said while smiling amusedly.

"Ryan, confession or challenge?" Sakura asked while grinning.

"…Challenge" Ryan said firmly.

He know that if he kept going with confession then even his darkest secret could be revealed, Sakura seemed she won't hesitate so going with confession would not end well. But going with the challenge may yield the same result as Sakura grinned when she heard his response…Oh shit, Ryan prayed to whatever holy beings out there this challenge won't be so diabolical.

"I challenge you to go out to the balcony, then scream 'Sakura my dearest queen!' at the top of your lungs" Sakura said while sneering.

Ryan and the girls' eyes went wide, that was dreadful for Ryan but an ingenious idea to the girls. Why can't Ryan pick challenge option sooner? Oh the things they could made him do! Ryan sighed, he just reap what he sow so he got no choice in this.

"…Lets end the game after this, shall we?" Ryan asked the girls.

"You're chickening out?" Kallen asked while smirking.

"Yeah I do. I got a feeling that this would only get worse if we continue" Ryan said while smiling somberly.

"Agreed. But challenge is a challenge Ryan-kun, the balcony is waiting" Mei said while smiling.

"Don't worry, Bronya would make sure that the recording won't spread out…around Soukai" Bronya said while smiling slightly.

Sakura readied her smartphone in recording mode as Ryan walked to the balcony, he got a feeling that this will seal his fate sometimes in the future. He took deep breath as he shout as loud as he can, that earned him several weird looks from pedestrians on the road beneath him, his neighbor who was smoking on the balcony beside his and Hai who was cackling on the alley near the apartment building.

.

"Ahahahaha! I still can't believe you did that!" Kiana said while laughing.

"Geez, enough already" Ryan said while frowning.

Both of them made their way toward Kiana's home, she asked Ryan to come with her since Cecilia and Siegfried had something to attend today so she asked Ryan to accompany her for dinner. Kiana produced the key to her house, unlocked the main entrance before she and Ryan went inside.

Ryan head to the living room and sat on the couch, he took out his phone to see that Viking group chat was suspiciously devoid of any new chats…What were his men doing today? Usually, at least someone would spew some senseless bullshit on the chat to make things lively…Guess all of them still resting?

Kiana changed her clothes inside her room, just to a plain white t-shirt and black short pants. She came down and saw Ryan sitting on the couch while staring blankly into his phone, curiously she went over to look for a bit and she saw him on an online shopping website and in equipment category

…Boys had their own thing for equipment and mechanical stuff huh? Her father also sometimes like to browse equipment catalogue looking for something she had no clue at…What's with them and their fascination for mechanical stuff?

"I'll start dinner" Kiana simply said.

"You can cook?" Ryan asked while sneering.

"…Wait, so all this time you thought I can't?" Kiana asked with cocked eyebrows, sounding offended.

"Not exactly, I just never saw you ever cooked something" Ryan answered.

"Is that so. Well, prepare to be blown off! My food will make you experience bliss!" Kiana said while smirking.

…Ryan only smiled and return to his phone before his brain fart resulted him interpreting Kiana's words in different light…Prepare to get blown off? Did she mean a blowjo-…Ryan didn't hesitate slapping his own cheek hard, what's with him!? Many of these dirty thoughts or events suddenly happening today! Was he sexually frustrated? Was the stress caused by continuous combat resulted in overdrive hormone production? He had read that continuous combat situations could resulted in a situation like this.

"Whoa! Why did you slapped yourself?!" Kiana asked from the kitchen counter.

"No, just a mosquito. It bugged me for a while now" Ryan lied smoothly.

Man, this couldn't go on or it would affect his mental judgment in the future. He had a unit to lead to so he had to focus…Come to think of it, how did the soldiers manage their combat stress? Oh yeah…relieving themselves. Add to the fact that he's still a teenager too, this had become quite difficult situation…

How should he do it? The regular good old meat beating? That seemed to be a way out…for the moment. Ryan spend so much time thinking about it that he was surprised when Kiana snapped her fingers in front of his eyes, he stumbled back into the sofa then looked at Kiana who had concerned face.

"You're pretty out of it, what's wrong?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"Just thinking some stuff" Ryan said while smiling.

"You know, it baffles me the fact that guys could just sit, think about something for hours and looked unresponsive. How did you guys do that?" Kiana asked Ryan.

"Its natural thing, I can't really explained it" Ryan answered while shrugging.

"…Anyway, dinner's ready. I made Burnt Pizza Toast" Kiana said while smiling.

"…Burnt Pizza Toast?" Ryan squinted his eyes.

"Dad taught me how to make one, simple and quite easy to mass produce. Delicious too!" Kiana said as she walked to the dining room.

"…Siegfried Kaslana original recipe huh?" Ryan muttered as he followed Kiana.

Ryan followed Kiana as she put their dinner on the table, several piece of toast alongside a glass of milk. After both were seated, they immediately took a bite…Well, Ryan had to give Siegfried a proper compliment after this because it certainly tasted unique for a piece of toast!

Both Ryan and Kiana ate while talking about mundane things, they soon finished up and Ryan volunteered to wash the dish…After that, Kiana proceeded to dragged Ryan upstairs into her room…Normally this would send any male various improper signals, but Ryan knew that Kiana just want to hang out with him…After ten years of separation, at least he could do this much to make up.

Kiana's room was simple looking room with blue walls and light blue ceiling, most of the furniture's were white colored and there's a TV with game console alongside a computer on her desk. Ryan looked around and he saw several HOMU dolls, posters and even a gun rack on the corner…Wait, a gun rack? Ryan could saw several USP .45 in there and what appears to be MSR3 on it…That gun was also equipped with long range scope, Ryan wondered what Kiana used the gun for?

Kiana went through her dresser to look for something, Ryan walked to her bedside and saw three framed photos on it. The first picture was her picture alongside Siegfried and Cecilia, the second picture was Kiana's picture wearing her junior high school uniform, carrying guns…Must be when the first time she went on mission back then. Ryan looked toward the third picture and his eyes widened…It was a picture of five years old Kiana, who seated underneath a tree, with a boy who had green hair and green eyes beside her.

Ryan unconsciously took the third picture to observe it more closely…So, this was him back then? Man, he looked so innocent in this picture. He sat while carrying a book with blue cover as Kiana sat beside him looking at what he read…Ryan unconsciously smiled until he heard something fell to the floor, he looked to the side and saw Kiana took several albums out of her dresser.

"…Figured I'd show this to you" Kiana said to Ryan.

"Is that the pictures of the past?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"Yeah, come on, have a look" Kiana said.

Both of them huddled on the floor as Kiana opened the first album. There's two separate pictures of baby Kiana and Ryan, a picture where both crawling on the floor, both who sat while staring at each other, there's one picture where Ryan and Kiana splattered some walls with blue paint as Siegfried stood behind them while scratching his head, there's one where both were around four and six years old fishing on the pier with Cecilia watching over both of them and lastly in the album, the picture where Kiana went to pre-school for the first time and Ryan for elementary school. Both of them wore their school uniform, standing beside the school gate…

That's where Ryan saw it, the complete picture of him with his family. Ryan stood beside Kiana with their parents behind them, Siegfried wore blue shirt with brown pants was grinning while Cecilia wearing black jacket and red skirt smiled elegantly…The other couple beside them was a beautiful young woman wearing one piece yellow dress with long green hair tied in high ponytail style, soft blue eyes and she held small Ryan's shoulder as she smiled to the camera…She's no doubt his mother, Aurora Taurus.

The man who wore light green t-shirt and black pants next to her had medium spiky blonde hair, sharp green eyes, with thin goatee beard on him was also grinning while looking at the camera…Ryan felt like he finally saw his father for the first time in his life after his memory loss. The man was certainly Fredrick Taurus, his suspicion was proven correct when he saw the exact same necklace that he wore now dangling around his father's neck…

"Yeah, that's taken on the school entrance" Kiana said to Ryan.

"…I felt like the first time I ever saw my father, because I really can't remember how he looked like" Ryan said somberly.

"Now you knew Ryan…Sorry it took this long for me to show this but, I don't want the others to intrude on this moment" Kiana said softly.

"It's alright…Can I get a copy of these pictures?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"Sure, I'll scan them and mailed it to you later" Kiana answered while smiling.

"Thanks" Ryan said while smiling back.

Kiana packed the album and returned it to where it belongs, she also went to the kitchen to grab some snacks and drinks while Ryan waited on her room…Ryan curiously inspected the gun cage where he took one USP.45 out, this one were colored in white and grey two tone and it looked quite worn out. He unloaded the magazine to see that it was empty, he reinserted it and put it back to the cage.

Now he took the one still looked new, it was colored black and had suppressor attached alongside laser flashlight combo attachment underneath the barrel. Ryan never saw Kiana carrying this before, this was USP.45 EX SOPMOD. Kiana reentered her room and she put the snacks on the table, she went over toward Ryan who was still inspecting the USP he held.

"That's a present from dad, on my sixteenth birthday" Kiana said to Ryan.

"He gave you SOPMOD version? That must have cost quite a bit" Ryan asked Kiana.

"Yeah…But, I haven't even used it" Kiana said to Ryan.

"Why not?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"…You know, that's the gun I'd like to modify until it reach its peak performance first. But, I haven't got enough money yet so that project still on hold" Kiana said while shrugging.

"I see…Anyway, what time your parents would be home?" Ryan asked Kiana.

"In a moment" Kiana said as she checked her wristwatch.

Ryan walked toward Kiana's desk, he moved the mouse on Kiana's desk accidentally and her PC screen lit up, he was confused on why the hell the browser app was opened. But he decided that he would be privacy invading asshole for now and he immediately pressed CTRL + H on the keyboard, that immediately opened Kiana's browser search history…Ryan grinned at what he saw. Nhentai? Really Kiana, you're quite the naughty girl!

"…Kiana, what's this about your internet history?" Ryan asked while grinning.

"Huh?! WAIT! DON'T!" Kiana screeched in horror.

"My childhood friend is my wife…Man, you read stuff like this? Got to admit, this doujin was quite good! Glad to know you're on the vanilla side!" Ryan said while snickering.

"Ryan Taurus! Get away from my computer!" Kiana shouted at Ryan.

Kiana dashed forward in unreal speed, yanked Ryan away from her computer and immediately deleted any evidence of her ever opening the site. She sighed in melancholy as Ryan threw chuckling fit, she stared at him with a bit of embarrassed blush on her cheeks and she was pouting. Cute, but that didn't cause Ryan to stop laughing. Eventually, Kiana pinched Ryan a bit in the arm, not too hard of course.

"Ouch ahahahahaha! I can't believe there's someone on this day and age who didn't know about incognito mode!" Ryan said as he try to control his laugh.

"I forgot to turn one on alright! God, you of all people knew about this…" Kiana said as she looked to the side.

"Too bad girl! Now we got each other shame cards!" Ryan said while grinning.

"Hmph! Just you wait Ryan!" Kiana said to Ryan.

But Ryan had to bumped his left leg to Kiana's desk where Kiana put the ice tea filled cup as snacks in hurry to delete her browser history, the cup fell and splashed Ryan's pants and caused his pants to get wet. Both were frozen for two seconds before Ryan shrugged at Kiana.

"Drenching my pants? This is not how you should get your revenge, Kiana" Ryan said while smiling amusedly.

"I'm not a psychic! It's not even my fault! Come on, take it off, we could dry your pants with the washing machine" Kiana said while pouting.

"Huh? Don't worry this would dry by itself!" Ryan said to Kiana.

"No it won't, take it off!" Kiana insisted.

"Ha? W-Wait! Don't take off my pants! H-Holy shit!" Ryan had to struggle as Kiana forcefully grabbing his pants.

Kiana struggled a bit and she stumbled upon her chair, she lost her balance but Ryan who already got his pants down quickly caught Kiana before she fell to the floor. Kiana's eyes widened, Ryan was looking serious instead of his goofy expression before she fell…Now both of them stood while hugging each other…Kiana felt she should let go and apologize but…There's something inside her who like this very much, the devilish side of her successfully took over as she stayed like this without any hint of letting Ryan go.

"Kiana? You alright?" Ryan said to Kiana.

"Yeah I'm alright…This just feels surprisingly comfortable" Kiana said while smiling.

"Uuhhh, okay?" Ryan answered unsurely.

"Kiana, darling? Have you had dinner yet? We brought some-"

Kiana's room door was opened and Ryan alongside Kiana stared at it with horror stricken face, there stood Cecilia while smiling with a plastic bag on her right hand. Her cyan eyes widened in shock when she saw Kiana and Ryan hugged each other with Ryan's pants down on the floor, Cecilia smiled as she slowly closed the door and immediately walked back downstairs. Siegfried was resting as he leaned on the couch when he saw his wife sat beside him still with composed expression, but her hands were fidgety…Why?

"Sieg, I think we should spend the night outside" Cecilia said while smiling.

"Huh? Why? We just got home" Siegfried asked confusedly.

"Tonight, our daughter is about to become a woman" Cecilia said something outrageous while smiling.

"…SAY WHAT?!" Siegfried said as he jumped from the couch.

""WAIT! WE CAN EXPLAIN THIS!"" Ryan and Kiana shouted from upstairs.

After some awkward explanation, Siegfried and Cecilia only shrugged while smiling. Kiana was lectured to at least notify Cecilia or Siegfried when she have someone over next time, all in order for this kind of thing won't happen again. Ryan and Kiana sat across Siegfried and Cecilia with Ryan wore one of Siegfried's jersey's pants to cover his black boxer, fortunately it's not wet.

"Good grief young lady, you almost gave me heart attack there" Siegfried said with half opened eyes.

"Sheesh! It's mom's fault for jumping the gun alright!" Kiana said while pouting.

"Well, glad that the misunderstanding solved…Anyway Ryan, it's late already so why don't you stay for the night?" Cecilia asked Ryan.

"Yeah well, tomorrow still a day off. Why not?" Ryan said while smiling.

"Now you're talking boy! Come on, accompany this old man for a while wouldn't you?" Siegfried said to Ryan.

Kiana proceed to help Cecilia in the back while Ryan sat across Siegfried on the sofa, Siegfried turned on the TV on the living room and played the late night news. Siegfried took something out from the small plastic bag beside him and threw it toward Ryan, it was a package of cigarettes. Ryan smiled amusedly at this as he put it on the table, Siegfried also smiled while nodded his head.

"I see you knew the fact that Kiana hate the smell of tobacco" Siegfried said while smiling.

"Yeah, she told me she used to kick you whenever you smoke inside the house" Ryan said to Siegfried.

"When I smoke too much, she'll do that…That's why, better kept it in moderation Ryan…You're not a kid anymore, I can't really tell you 'not to smoke'" Siegfried said to Ryan.

"Don't worry, it's my drinking habit that I need to watch out for" Ryan said while smiling bitterly.

"Fair point…Anyway, how's school?" Siegfried asked Ryan.

"Other than the last mission? Yeah, pretty well. I got lots of friends, I got part time job so all works out" Ryan answered as he leaned on the sofa.

"Glad to hear it…You know, the first time I realized that the leader of The Vikings was you it was back then when you fought The Valkyries. When you took off your helmet, Cecilia and I were shocked" Siegfried said to Ryan.

"Really? My name didn't even reach you? I thought you of all people should have access to classified information?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Heh, even Cecilia and I can't access some info that could only be viewed by Schicksal Councilors. I only knew about the program's existence, not who participated in it" Siegfried said as he crossed his leg.

"I see…" Ryan simply answered.

"…I've heard what you had to go through two years ago, I want you to be honest with me, Ryan. The first time you killed someone, how did it happen?" Siegfried asked, in serious tone.

"…Huh...First time I killed someone? It was back then before I dived deeper into the red zone, we're the small militia group that ran patrol on the edge of the red zone, looking for survivors and supplies…Small group of bandits ambushed us, at first I hesitated in shooting someone. Sure I've killed zombies, but I never thought of them as humans…Right then, a bullet hit my plating and I fell to the ground. I still remember that time clearly, it felt like something broke inside me. Without any hesitation, I aimed my handgun toward the guy who shot me and squeezed the trigger" Ryan explained to Siegfried.

"Is that so…How do you feel after that?" Siegfried asked Ryan.

"Nothing…I knew its self-defense, he lost his life for trying to kill me and it's his own damn fault. Not even once I thought about the fact I just took someone's life and felt disgusted by it...As time passed, it became a habit…Killing someone is just like another chore for me" Ryan said to Siegfried.

"It's true what people said…Once you killed someone, your life will never be the same again. Some wise man once said 'once the soul of warrior within someone awakens, it will never return dormant', that means even when you finally found peace…There's this emptiness within, that yearn the fires of combat…Have you ever felt that, Ryan?" Siegfried asked Ryan.

"…I honestly don't know, I never thought too much about it" Ryan answered while shrugging.

"Be on the lookout for that, many good warriors I knew fell prey to this kind of thing. It does many things that will affect your performance in battle…" Siegfried advised while smiling.

"I'll keep that in mind, thanks" Ryan answered with small smile.

"You're welcome boy…Anyway, is Kiana still there?" Siegfried asked Ryan.

Kiana left few minutes ago after conversing for a bit with Cecilia, they're on the kitchen behind Siegfried and Ryan got to see Kiana going upstairs. Cecilia was still in the kitchen, it seemed she was doing something but Ryan didn't had a clue on what she's doing.

"Nah, she returned to her room" Ryan said to Siegfried.

"Good…Ryan, she's been searching for you in the past ten years…She finally found you and I don't want to see her devastated for the second time, you get me?" Siegfried said to Ryan.

And he said that while looking dead serious, he stared at Ryan with narrowed eyes and expected a clear answer. Siegfried knew how hard Kiana had been searching for him, how she sulked when they had to move to the east, now she was reunited with him but fate pulled its own twist. Ryan face was unreadable even though deep inside, he was seriously contemplating Siegfried words…It didn't took a nuclear engineer to know what Siegfried meant. Ryan himself knew what to answer…He also honestly didn't plan on doing that.

"…I got you" Ryan said to Siegfried.

"Then let this agreement sealed by the laws of bros and approved by council of men" Siegfried said while smiling.

"Funny, I said that too once. I see we visited the same website for humor!" Ryan said while grinning.

"Hahahahaha! This just get better and better! What's your account name?" Siegfried said as he pulled out his smartphone.

Cecilia arrived with bowl of snacks and three cans of beer, both Siegfried and Cecilia really seemed to consider Ryan as an adult already. The three of them were joined by Kiana few minutes later after her night skincare routine, together they talked until late at night where they decided to rest. Ryan was given the option to stay on the guest room available, but he choose the couch because he still had 'something to do'.

Ryan took out his phone, he browse through several sites with keyword 'Soul Bridge' on it…That's right, he's still curious as hell and that mysterious woman figure from two days ago still haven't made her appearance despite saying she will do so. Kiana arrived back in the living room with a pillow and spare blanket to saw Ryan staring seriously at his phone, she approached him and put the pillow and blanket beside him.

"Hey, here's your pillow and blanket" Kiana said from behind Ryan.

"Thanks Kiana" Ryan said while smiling.

"…Don't sleep late alright? This is your chance to rest up" Kiana said while smiling back.

"Alright…You go on ahead" Ryan said to Kiana.

"Good night, Ryan" Kiana said while smiling sweetly.

"Sweet dream, princess" Ryan replied while smirking.

Kiana quickly bolted her way upstairs, while smiling and with blushing cheeks…Ryan seriously need to learn that every action has consequences, you dumb flirting twat. He continue his search on his phone and met with the expected result, nothing that could really explain what the woman said to him…

He had vague idea but without any source for confirmation, it's nothing more than a theory. Ryan decided he had enough for today, he quickly set the pillow and tucked himself underneath the blanket and soon sleep overtook him.

.

Ryan went home in the morning after some breakfast and did his usual routine…The tattered small journal on Ryan's right hand was taken from a dead captain on the operation few days ago, nothing of worthy note was on its early pages until the last entry. It's written that the ship came from Shanghai, China. They're tasked to deliver the cargo which was unknowingly weapons shipment to Vladivostok, Russia.

…Due to the storm warning over The Yellow Sea, the ship was forced to temporarily settle on the island that became Task Force Terra area of operation. Unfortunately the entry stopped there, there's no indication on what really happened before the captain was executed.

Shanghai…Now, Ryan remembered something. Around nine days ago, if Ryan's not mistaken, Howard was making his way to Shanghai for additional 'business'…The journal entry from their departure from Guangzhou was a week ago.

Coincidence? Maybe, that was stretching it much. But right now Ryan thought that he better kept every information he gained as who knows one of them might connect with each other. Ryan was so focused on what he was doing that he failed to notice that someone had been knocking on his front door.

"…Knocking didn't work, let's try the surefire way…HEY RYAN! MIA KHALIFA IS ON YOUR DOORSTEP!" Someone shouted outside his apartment.

Ryan wasted zero millisecond as he rushed to the front door, opened it and dragged whoever in front of it inside his apartment. There were two guys that Ryan dragged inside his apartment, a grinning brunette and snickering silver haired man. Han and Gin dressed on their casual wear, Han was dressed in black hoodie with green cargo pants while Gin wore blue T-shirt with black pants.

"See? Told you it'll work" Han said to Gin.

"I'll be sure to note that down" Gin said while smiling.

"Are you guys trying to kill me or something!? I got two girls as my neighbor and both of them went to the same school as us!" Ryan scolded Gin and Han.

"Your own damn fault, I've tried knocking but it didn't work that well!" Han said while shrugging.

"God! I don't have any excuses to explain toward Kallen and Sakura if they heard that" Ryan said as he held his head.

"Huh…Wow, look at you, living surrounded by beauties!" Gin said while snickering.

"Yeah well, got to admit that did made me smile" Ryan said as he moved inside.

Gin and Han went toward Ryan's living room, Han raided Ryan's fridge for a can of beer before he plopped himself on top of the couch while Gin surveyed the entire apartment. There's compilation of sticky notes on top of the maintenance desk, Ryan's PC was turned on with multiple tabs on his browser that displayed a lot of articles with several program running and maintenance equipment sprawled on the floor near the maintenance desk. Gin shook his head sideways, this what will happen if Ryan was left by his own for two days…

"…You've been busy" Gin simply commented.

"I got a lot of things I need to do, Gin" Ryan simply answered.

"Ryan, you know the meaning of 'day off' right?" Gin asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Yeah, so?" Ryan stared at Gin.

"…I think you're doing it wrong" Gin said, his hand gestured toward his desk and PC.

Gin knew about this side of Ryan the best, that's why he put himself as the second in command to lessen the burden. Ryan would sometimes worked without paying attention to time, that's the main reason why sometimes Ryan didn't even went to sleep for an entire day. Well that's good if they were being rushed for a deadline but this was supposed be a vacation for them, doing all of this when you're supposed to go out and have fun looked so wrong.

"Don't we have an entire weekend to burn as vacation?" Ryan asked while he cleaned the barrel of his M1911H.

"Yeah but that mean you should spend it having fun! Come on! You'll burn yourself out before we return to our usual business!" Han said with exasperated face.

Frankly speaking, Ryan thought that Han was right. He had spent the entire day since this morning to do whatever he's doing right now, research, gun maintenance, theorizing and planning about few things…Ryan looked to the apartment window to saw clear the blue skies hanging on top of Soukai.

Perhaps this would be a good day for him to get some fresh air? His two friends were here too, that's a start. But he had spent the entire day having fun yesterday? Oh well, its vacation so he better make full use of it.

"…Fine, I'll bite. What do you have in mind?" Ryan said as he faced his two lieutenants.

"We could try a lot of things because most of us is eighteen and above! Just imagine, whore house, street racing, smoking weed-" Han said while Ryan and Gin looked astonished.

"Hold the fuck up Han! I don't want to be involved in something that could end like three days ago!" Ryan said firmly.

"…What's so bad about it?" Han asked, completely clueless.

"What's so bad about it?! I kissed Clair unconsciously! I barged into Saint Freya Girl's dormitory, while topless! That's enough to ruin my next three years' experience on that school!" Ryan said loudly.

Gin squinted his eyes while Han's mouth hanged open at that revelations, they were out of their minds due to the alcohol though so the two of them can't remember on what happened few days ago…So apparently, Ryan himself made few mess but how did he know that? Oh wait…his harem might have told him about what he did, Gin supposed.

"…I don't think that's going to be the case" Gin muttered his thoughts.

"You kissed Clair?!" Han said, taken aback by the revelation.

"That's what got your attention!?" Ryan said with half opened eyes.

"Of course it does! Man, she's one of The Seven Freya Ladies! Do you know about it?" Han asked while smiling broadly.

"…No clue at all, what's that?" Ryan asked back.

"On Saint Freya Academy, there are seven ladies that well known among the populace. Ayane Koizumi, Katya Volkova, Sera Cornelia, Riani Putri Utami, Bella Fastoria, Rena Fujiwara and lastly, Claire Caelum Solace…These seven amazingly beautiful ladies, they are popular and good at what they do! For example, Clair is so charismatic that she won the presidential election last year in a landslide!" Han explained to Ryan enthusiastically.

…Ryan sometimes wondered on how did Han got this kind of information, he could request an Intel and Han would be quick to give him one. Han probably had several connections inside or outside the school, he came to Soukai earlier than Ryan anyway so there's a good chance he had acquaintances that helped him with information…Ryan didn't really care, as long it could help them all then he won't mind the small details…But he still had to ask about this one.

"…Do pray tell, how did you know about all of this?" Ryan asked Han curiously.

"Hey, I'm your left hand am I? Aside from military works, advices, paperwork's and other senseless technical bullshits, Intel is supposed to be my specialty…I do feel a bit grossed out for being used to masturbate though" Han said with bitter smile.

"Hey! I used my right hand for that!" Ryan exclaimed.

""…What?"" Gin and Han looked at Ryan in confusion.

"Ahem…Nothing, forget it" Ryan said while looking to the side.

"But technically Han isn't wrong about his specialty, Ryan" Gin said to Ryan.

"You know Gin, putting him in the seat of third in command do make me wary sometimes" Ryan said while frowning.

"Oh come on, how many fuck up that he did to made you worry like that?" Gin asked while sneering.

"Too many. Remember that incident with Valkyrie's lunch box?" Ryan asked with smug smile.

"Oh yeah, that incident. You know, Rahn still has to work his ass off to pay the debt until today" Gin said as he grinned.

"Hey that's quite rude!" Han exclaimed from the side.

"I'm joking alright…I wouldn't even round up The Vikings if it weren't for you, Han" Ryan said while smiling a bit.

A bit of trivia about Han, he's the one who actually possessed the initiatives to unite their bunch of ragtag civilian-about-to-be-a-soldier group. But he himself knew that he didn't have the charismatic leadership traits so his comrades would treated him just like other comrades, he need someone with air of command and experience among them as a leader.

That's when Han saw this one handed man, his gaze were fierce and he seemed battle hardened. All Han had to do next was to help him out rounding up their comrades, then he was appointed as the third in command.

"Well you're welcome!" Han said while grinning.

"…Putting that aside, you said that these seven ladies were specialized in their own business…Are they also came from a rich family?" Ryan asked to Han.

"Whoa, I'm shocked! How did you know that?" Han said as his eyes went wide.

"…This all screams straight out of generic school romance comedy plotline cliché, that's why" Ryan said with half closed eyes.

"…I think you've been reading too much manga" Gin commented from the side.

"Nah, I haven't even had the chance to read them again…It might be a good idea to form some kind of partnership with these ladies though, who knows the advantage we The Vikings could get" Ryan said as he stood up from his seat.

…Han contemplated on what Ryan just said and his eyes widened in realization, so here's the deal. These girls were good at what they do, presumably possessed vast connections and they were popular ladies…Han imagined if The Vikings were in good terms with them, the help and services they could get from these ladies would be a tremendous help during their school years! All they had to do to achieve that? Get the girls to befriend their chad commander! The rest of the process would be a matter of time only!

"…Wait a second! Gin, our commander is a fucking genius!" Han suddenly exclaimed.

"Uh…Thanks?" Ryan said in doubtful tone.

"Explain? Because last time I checked he's a reckless bastard!" Gin said while snickering.

"Hey!" Ryan complained.

"What is the most notable about Ryan Taurus on Saint Freya Academy?" Han asked Gin with serious face.

"My gunslinger skills!" Ryan claimed immediately.

"…His ability to bewitch, seduce and charm a woman without even trying!" Gin answered as his eyes went wide in realization.

"Exactly!" Han said as he pointed his index finger to Gin.

"Oi, the fuck?!" Ryan said while his eyes were twitching.

"If you get these seven ladies dancing in the palm of your hands…or around your dick, it could give the advantage our unit needs! Man, I respect you even more now!" Han said as he saluted at Ryan, The Viking way.

Gin and Ryan had their jaw dropped at Han's explanation, but Gin inclined to agree with Han…He noticed that Ryan had some kind of 'manga protagonist' kind of power with how easy he attracted girls, but deep inside Gin knew that Ryan wasn't dense so the chance this could turn into a double edged blade would be quite high…Ryan can't believe what Han could say or concocted in the span of few seconds sometimes, he admitted that it would be a possible method yet somehow that just wrong! He's a man with morals for fuck sake!

"…Honestly Han, WHAT THE FUCK?!" Ryan shouted with tick mark on his forehead.

"You're the one who came up with the plan yourself!" Han argued while smiling confidently.

"But you're the one who laid down the methods! God! What's with you people thought of me as some kind of horny playboy with a loose cannon between his legs!?" Ryan further said in annoyed manner.

And this was what had been eating him since he enrolled into Saint Freya Academy! Ryan didn't do much when it comes to flirting around yet girls would seemed become interested in him nonetheless! Ever since Junior High! He admitted that he's handsome as fuck, could be a badass in the battlefield, borderline suicidal in a fight, charming when he wanted to, his body was nicely shaped and…Oh my…Ryan's eyes went wide in realization…Most of girls dig that kind of guy, right? Holy shit…Ryan sat dumbfounded at his own conclusions…The cause was natural all this time! Who can he blame then?! God?!

"Ryan, it's a good plan nevertheless! It wouldn't hurt to try to get to know these girls right? Who knows? One of them might suit your taste!" Gin tried to reasoned with Ryan while smiling.

"…Few girls on our class alone suit my taste! But, I think I got your point…What if I somehow find 'the one' among them. Oh well, wouldn't hurt to try I guess" Ryan said as he leaned back to his chair.

"Now that's the spirit! With that out of the way, change your clothes, we're going out! For recreation!" Han said to Ryan.

"Huh? Where?" Ryan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"You'll see!" Han said with a grin on his face.

"…Never trust someone who tell you that when you ask for destination, never" Ryan muttered out loud.

.

A Red Mitsubishi Lancer speed down the busy road of Soukai's downtown, it swiftly and elusively evaded the vehicles on the road. Han grinned as he shift a gear on the car while listening to 'Running in the 90's' in loud volume, he easily drifted on a busy intersection of Soukai's downtown while keeping constant speed. Ryan and Gin both had impassive face even when Han performed dangerous turns, both of them didn't fazed by crazy driving like this even for a bit.

"Han, this is downtown. The chance of you hitting someone is quite high if you drive like this" Gin commented from the backseat.

"No worries, I got my driving license in legitimate way" Han said while grinning.

"That won't work when the cop's get on your ass" Ryan commented from Han's left side.

"I won't have any trouble if it's a female cop!" Han said then winked.

"…You're awfully optimistic in your prediction, what if it's a male cop?" Ryan asked Han.

"Then we're fucked" Han simply answered.

"…Lovely" Gin commented then facepalmed.

The car arrived on an average looking building and the car skidded into halt so suddenly that the tire screeched uncomfortably, that attracted the attention of the pedestrians before they proceed to ignore them for being 'reckless driver'. The trio got out from the car and stared at the building that Han brought Ryan and Gin to, it's a square looking building with brick wall and word 'Coliseum' on bright yellow neon sign. Ryan and Gin stared at Han with confused expression but all Han did was waved his hand in 'follow me' way and entered the building.

"…Ryan. I got bad feeling about this" Gin said as he stared at the building.

"Me too honestly, but nothing ventured nothing gained…I'd go with 'fuck it' method" Ryan said to Gin.

"If you say so, lead on" Gin said to Ryan.

"Huh? Why me?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Remember Eastern Kyoto two years ago? I want my payback" Gin said while frowning.

Two years ago, when Gin and Ryan just met, both of them were exploring the abandoned Eastern Kyoto for supplies and possible safe place to camp the night. Ryan told Gin to went inside an abandoned convenience store to look for food and water as Ryan stood guard outside for any signs of hostile, but Ryan failed to notice the fact that the convenience store were crawling with two reapers.

Safe to say it didn't end well, Gin was scared shitless as he desperately ran outside avoiding scythe slashes while Ryan had to struggle firing an M16B-PAR at two reapers with one hand. They did survived the encounter unscathed at the cost Gin ranting at Ryan about his frustration, the fact that despite Ryan being the more experienced survivor he failed to notice the little detail that the place wasn't empty.

"…Sheesh, you still bitter about that? I've said sorry already" Ryan said while frowning too.

"Heh, you need to experience it yourself my friend" Gin said as he tapped Ryan's right shoulder.

"Fine, I'll do it" Ryan said then sighed.

Ryan opened the door and Gin followed closely behind him, what they saw inside the building gave them mixed feelings. After going through the seemingly normal sport equipment shop, the inside of the building's rear section was filled with men and women crowding around a ring surrounded by fences that had two persons fighting each other inside. The crowd cheered hard when one of the opponent received a spinning kick to the head, the opponent fell down and the crowd cheered harder.

"…You know, this is the last thing on my mind when you mention 'recreation'" Gin said to Han.

"Han, what's this!?" Ryan asked Han.

"Can't you see my friend? Source of income! Moolah!" Han said to Ryan.

"You made living by betting on fighters like this!?" Ryan asked Han in disbelieve.

"Nah, just couple of times when I need money quick!" Han said while smiling.

"I'm pretty sure this is illegal, Han! Why would you bring us here!?" Gin asked Han.

"You two could get a quick buck in this place! With what we will be doing tonight? It'll cost us quite a bit! You'll need the extra cash!" Han said while smiling.

"Seriously! What would we be doing tonight?!" Ryan asked Han.

"Get the money and I'll tell you! Hey, both of you were the badasses of among The Vikings! Winning in this thing should be pretty easy for the both of you, nothing to worry about! You went in, you get the money, I won the bets and I see this as an absolute win! For the three of us! Come on, what you say!?" Han asked while grinning.

Honestly speaking, Han was that typical friend who could land you in jail sometimes. But Ryan and Gin weren't exactly a guy who strictly followed the rules either and extra money were always a welcome addition in this kind of world…Gin stared at the fighter on the ring who just win the match, man that burly guy looked quite frightening but honestly a reaper zombie could do worse than him.

Ryan was seriously considering Han's offer, this won't be the first time he would ever break rules around Soukai but there's still this sense of 'this is wrong' inside his heart…Wait the fucking second, Ryan had killed a lot of guys and he seriously afraid of cops? Of course he was, what would Siegfried and Cecilia thought if he land not so smoothly in jail? The girls too? That won't be good.

"You could win up to five thousand credits each match" Han said while smiling.

"I don't know, this is quite risky" Ryan said to Han.

"Kore ga mucha no kotto…" Gin muttered to himself.

"Don't worry about the cops! In this section? They're one of the customers too!" …That fucking sealed it.

"Alright…I'll see you guys in jail then, this will surely land us in one. If we got caught by the clean ones that is!" Gin said as he walked to the registry table.

"…Han, if we're going to jail for this, I'm seriously dragging you with me, am I clear?" Ryan asked as he stared at Han impassively.

"Pretty clear, my friend! Wudenbar! Now get going, I'll place the bets, ja?" Han said while grinning.

"…What have I gotten myself into?" Ryan muttered as he walked to the registration table.

* * *

 **Weapon Trivia**

 **MSR3 (Mars Sniper Rifle 3): This sniper rifle is considered the modern days hunting rifle, loaded with 7.62mm bullet it has effective range up to seven hundred meters. Each magazine only fit five rounds each, the rifle operating mechanism is bolt action and despite its lightweight, it's quite hard to use in close quarter situation. The rifle saw limited use among military forces around the world where most of the weapons are used as training rifle for sniping classes, but a gun is a gun in the end so even this gun could be extremely useful piece of tool in the hand of capable hands.**

* * *

 **Preview for the next chapter (Operation Hollow Gate)**

" **Ready to meet them, commander? The Seven Freya Ladies?"**

" **Wait, a Masquerade Ball? In two days? Really?"**

" **This isn't just some fancy outing, Ryan. It's also an escort mission for Task Force Terra, Vikings and Valkyries Joint Operation"**

" **I could only bring a plus one with me…A partner, a date, for tomorrow's masquerade ball…Just one girl"**

" **06 here, I'm in position and I hit the jackpot. Also, send 01 here will you? I got few profanity to declared towards him"**

" **Ryan, Gin, Han, I have several questions…First, what were the three of you thinking?!"**

"… **Oh my, so you're The Saint Gunslinger. It seems the rumors were right"**

" **Roses are red, violets are blue. Your friend is dead, next one is you!"**

" **Are you that dense? Talk! Seduce! Get laid! Three basic steps on how to handle women as Ryan Bond! That's what you need to do! Just get her out of here!"**

"… **Either Rahn just farted loudly into the radio or something did exploded near our location!"**


	11. Operation Hollow Gate

**How's it going everyone? Yeah…in my blind rage for losing my level 68 account for Honkai Impact with most of the characters unlocked, tons of good shit alongside weapons and back to my level 40's account which basically had nothing, I forgot to check the word count for this one (Holy shit it reached 25k words!)…I really need to put on a brake somewhere or this could get out of hand.**

 **Thanks for following, favorite and reviewing the story dear readers, here's the continuation, enjoy!**

.

…Ryan groggily opened his eyes, his head pounding, his body felt lethargic and his bladder was acting up…this symptom weren't anything new but it still suck when it happened. Ryan saw unfamiliar light green ceiling, equally green walls, TV that's different model from his, living room layout that totally screamed that this was not his apartment…Where the hell was he? He sat up, it turn out he fell asleep on the couch. That's when Ryan noticed one thing, he was only wearing his short grey boxer…

"…Wha?" Ryan said in confusion.

He looked around…what was the last thing he remembered? He remembered getting into that illegal fight club, won quite the amount of money and went toward…where again? Man, he can't remember anything…This would be the second time he passed out drinking this week! The symptom was there! Ryan sighed as he facepalmed…This wasn't good, at all…he need to keep his drinking habit in check. Just as he thought about that, the front door opened and someone came in.

"Ha, took you long enough" It was Gin who entered the room.

"Gin? Man…the hell happened?" Ryan groggily asked.

"Long story short, we got banned from Soukai southern outskirt strip club, permanently" Gin said while smiling bitterly.

"Strip club? We fight our ass off to earn money that we blew it all on strip dances!?" Ryan was so shocked his hangover was temporarily cured.

"Not just that! Including alcohol! And you should've seen your horny face when that one hot babe with massive tits gave you a lap dance!" Someone said.

That someone was Han who came inside with bruised left eye, gauze strapped on his right cheek and messed up brown hair came in behind Gin. Ryan considered asking what happened to him but he got better question to ask instead, why the hell did only Gin and Han who seemed to stay sober?! Why was it only him that passed out drunk!?

"Was I the only one who ended up drunk?!" Ryan asked Gin and Han.

"Yeah" "Basically" Gin and Han answered.

"But hey, no need to feel bad about it, I recorded the moment for your sober self to enjoy!" Han said while showing Ryan his smartphone.

Ryan immediately took Han's phone and browse through the gallery folder, he found the latest video which was taken last night and opened the file. There was him, seated in expensive looking red couch, with a brunette girl who wore very little clothing dancing on top of him. Ryan swallowed when he saw that Han spoke the truth about the girl, Ryan certainly looking like he had a blast.

"You got moves girl…" Ryan on the video said.

"Oh you haven't seen anything yet darling, for handsome guy like you? Let me show you my special techniques!" The girl said while smiling seductively.

The girl then faced the opposite direction from Ryan, she sat on his lap before she started to aggressively shaking her plump ass in front of him. Han wolf whistled off screen while Gin could be heard chuckling, Ryan looked at the girl's rear part while grinning like a horny idiot-

"…Okay, I've seen enough" Ryan said as he deleted the video.

"What? Why!? That was a good memory!" Han asked confusedly.

"I got girl friends that will questioned me to no end if they found out about this!" Ryan said while scowling.

"Oh yeah, forgot about that…" Han said while frowning.

Now Ryan realized that this was Gin's apartment, he's only been here few times before but hangover did messed his mind for a bit…Gin dropped the shopping bag on the kitchen's counter, he took out the items he bought from the department store near the apartment and store it to his fridge or the cupboard.

"Anyway, I'm making breakfast. What do you guys want?" Gin asked Ryan and Han.

""Steak"" Ryan and Han automatically answered.

Gin stopped whatever he's doing in favor to staring both of his so called 'friends' with absolute disgust and annoyance painted on his face, the sheer audacity of both Ryan and Han to request that straight in the morning, toward him who was not exactly the greatest cook and the fact he didn't bought that kind of meat...

"…These cunts…I'm making a cheese toast then" Gin said then scoffed.

"Hey if you're going to just make one dish then don't give us an option!" Han said as he sat on the couch.

Gin get started by taking out the bread alongside the cheese packaging, Han get up and opened Gin's fridge and rummaged through it. The fridge had several eggs, beef package, milk cartoon, marshmallow packaging, apple juice cartoon, several fruits, some vegetables and some syrup bottles…

"Gin" Han said.

"What?" Gin asked while putting the cheese on the bread.

"You got no beer?" Han asked while looking at Gin.

"…You Germans and alcohol are inseparable, huh?" Gin looked at Han with half closed eyes.

"That's just stereotype!" Han retorted.

"Stereotype is based on facts damnit! Are you going to raid my fridge too!?" Han retorted back.

"Friends share with each other, am I right?" Han asked while wiggling his eyebrows.

"Hah…Open that lower cabinet, just don't take everything like you did when you played Battle Royale" Gin said as he continued cooking.

"Danke!" Han said while grinning.

"…I need to get dressed, where's my clothes?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Washing machine, you could borrow mine for a while" Gin said nonchalantly.

So now he got his clothes dirty too, can't one night with drinking ever goes right in his life? Nah, no way. Ryan just nodded his head as he hit the shower and took one immediately, he relished the stream of morning cold water caressing his skin and his body awakened immediately. His sleepiness gone in an instant but his headache were still there…Oh well, nothing Aspirin can't fix anyway. After rummaging Gin's wardrobe, Ryan found clothes and immediately equipped it then head back to the living room for breakfast.

"…Hey, why would we got banned from that place anyway?" Ryan asked Gin.

"I got involved in something with a girl that resulted us having a big fight with the other patrons" Gin explained as he preparing the last toast.

"…That explanation is awfully lack in detail!" Ryan said while frowning.

"It's Charlotte, our classmate. She was being harassed near the place, I got involved and yeah…things didn't end well" Gin said awkwardly.

Charlotte Dubois, a cute girl, with waist long straight dark blue hair, dark emerald eyes, had average height yet curvy body, C cup and somehow a girl that attractive didn't really stood up inside the class filled with forty beautiful girls…Yeah, she's a bit of a loner, who was great with sniper rifle that could rivaled Agus himself in terms of proficiency but she stood in the backlines for most of the time. That's why she's not that popular, The Vikings definitely had their eyes on her though…

"Does Han and I also got involved?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Naturally we do, we kicked ass last night dude! They should know better than to mess with Viking's top guns even when we're drunk! But that's the reason we got banned, apparently the harasser were the friends of the place's owner. Bit of ass licking and we're out on the streets" Han explained then sipped on his drink.

"I see and I'll say fuck them…How's Charlotte?" Ryan asked Gin again.

"She's fine, I had to come up with the most bullshit excuse about us being there though" Gin answered as he sat on the dining table.

"The most important question is, did she buy it?" Han asked Gin as he also sat.

"Doubtful, but she didn't ask any further so I guess we're safe" Gin said to Han.

The three of them start digging in to the toast that Gin made and enjoyed their delicious breakfast after a long night, both of them talked about mundane things while eating cheese toast and milk as a drink. The food was quite good, Gin certainly spend time in practice cooking the dish.

"…Anyway, what day is today?" Gin asked out loud.

"Huh? It's Monday, why do you ask?" Han asked back.

"Wait a second…that means our vacation is over…" Gin said as he realized something.

"""…FUCK!""" Ryan, Gin and Han shouted at the same time.

.

Victoria was teaching the class regarding the wars in history and right now she arrived at The Battle of Thermopylae, Ancient Greeks against Ancient Persians. Both forces were fearsome in their own might, Persians possessed vast invading army that consisted of soldiers coming from many regions they conquered while The Greeks, Victoria focused on the legendary Spartan Warriors. Its widely known that Battle of Thermopylae were one of the most famous last stand in history of warfare, three hundred Spartan warriors against an entire army? That's a stuff of legends.

She taught the students about the value of choke point in the battlefield, one who controlled it would be in huge advantage against incoming enemy forces. Granted, it's actually a lot harder to fight with that tactic nowadays due to the existence of aerial units but the basic principle could still works against ground and sea units.

The Spartans used a choke point called Hellgates to hold off a large army by forcing them to attack through a narrow passage that prevented them from being surrounded, if the Spartans could manage that well only with spears and shield? Imagine a modern day barricade with machine guns, mortars, cannons and missile launchers behind it?

Or if they don't have enough resources to put on strong defenses on a choke point, turning it into a trap was always a plausible strategy. There were lots of ways that could be implemented in trapping units on a choke point, it all depends on the planning and timing so the one who seek to trap their enemies must be cunning and fast. If you're the one who were trapped, then you need to think fast for a way out because you won't have long.

"Mrs. Victoria, what if the opponent are Honkai creatures?" Fuuka raised her hand and asked.

"All the more simple…Honkai creatures seemed to lack, what would you called it? Advanced coordination. They possessed no command unit among them, so far. That means their actions were quite predictable, have you noticed that their basic response was to kill anything they deemed as 'threat' on sight? That's the loophole you're looking for if you want to implement this tactic" Victoria answered Fuuka's question.

"I see, thank you" Fuuka said as she lowered her hand.

"But trapping and killing it are different story right? Valkyries like you girls could confront them head on but what about you boys as Vikings? There's a clear difference in how would The Valkyries and Vikings approached this situation, you may have a solid plan but like I said before, battlefield is an unpredictable place…even your most perfect plan could go wrong with the right condition" Victoria said to the students.

There's a sound of door knocking and everyone's attention turned toward the door, after Victoria gave affirmation that they could come in the door was opened. Ryan, Gin and Han entered the classroom wearing their uniforms but their face were tensed alongside Han having a bruised eye and gauze on his cheek.

…This was the first time they were late for class and by the god it's almost first recess time. Victoria folded her arms, her face clearly disapproved of them and the whole class were filled with murmuring of the students.

"Wow, they're late for Victoria's lesson? Brave or plain stupid?" Rahn said to his fellow Vikings.

"I'm sure there's a reason for this" Igor said calmly.

"What reason mate? Our three top commanders all late at the same time, it's not something you'll see every day" James said to Igor.

"Have to agree, those three also out of contact yesterday" Agus said to James.

"There he is! No wonder his apartment was empty" Kallen said out loud.

"With the two of them? Where have they been this morning?" Sakura asked out loud.

"Ryan, why do I have a feeling that you were drunk again?" Kiana muttered while frowning.

"Mou Ryan-kun, this won't do…" Mei said while frowning.

Igor just heard the girls said and he huffed in amusement, this had become his daily habit lately to observe the relations between these girls and his commander. There's a strange dynamic between them, did they attract each other like a magnet? Yes, but somehow it's been a month and there's not that much development…not the one's HE's aware of.

"Ryan, Gin, Han, I have several questions…First, what were the three of you thinking?! Where the three of you have been!? You three are supposed to be the example for others! It's almost recess time, I need some explanation here!" Victoria said menacingly.

"Yeah well, about that…We have no excuse whatsoever" Han said while cringing.

"Ho?" A tick mark appeared on Victoria's forehead.

"…We forgot its Monday" Gin simply replied.

"…Did you get permission from Ms. Murata to enter class?" Victoria asked menacingly.

"""…No""" Ryan, Gin and Han said simultaneously.

"…I commend you three for having balls to do this, really…I'll make sure the three of you regret what you're doing. We'll continue this later" Victoria said to the three of them.

Victoria was about to say another few words regarding the conduct done by the three of her most trusted Vikings but she couldn't because her phone beeped, it's a message indicator and she immediately opened it. Reading the content of the message sent by Theresa herself, she scrutinized her eyes before she exhaled to keep her frustration from showing on her face.

"Class dismissed for today, looks like you guys got extra twenty minutes for recess. That being said you three alongside Agus, Rahn, James, Igor, Kiana, Bronya, Mei, Kallen, Sakura and Fuuka. I need you all to head toward briefing room, now" Victoria said out loud.

Wordlessly, those who got their name called immediately made their way to the briefing room. There's only one explanation for this situation, something happened and they're needed for a mission. But only thirteen of them were called? Why? What kind of mission would they receive? Each of them got their own speculation…They reached the room and door to the briefing room was opened, Himeko stood at the entrance before she noticed the group standing and looking at her.

"Good, all of you are here. Get in, we'll start the meeting soon" Himeko told the group.

Everyone quickly made their way inside and sat in their chosen seats, Victoria and Theresa came in ten seconds later. Victoria had her usual composed professional face while Theresa could be seen clearly frowning, the door closed and Himeko got on the podium immediately to turn operate the holographic projector. Theresa cleared her throat, she looked at everyone who were present before she spoke.

"Morning everyone, I got bad news and really bad news" Theresa begun speaking.

"…I love this Monday morning already" Rahn said sarcastically.

"Me too honestly, it baffles me despite Soukai having 'Safe Haven' status this place always got involved in something that could give us a headache…First off, Himeko, if you would" Theresa said to Himeko.

Himeko operated the holographic projector and shown the entire room several pictures, there's a picture of document and several people dressed with forestland camouflage military uniform, wearing three holed balaclava and carrying AKEM14 Assault Rifle. One look on these guys, The Vikings immediately knew that they didn't belong to any countries armed forces. There's no nations flag and they somehow genuinely looked like a terrorist, but they carried some expensive gear…like that rifle.

"As a former member I believe you're familiar with these people and how they work, Lieutenant Igor" Theresa said to Igor.

Igor's eyes widened when he saw the pictures, flashes of memory came back as he took in every single detail of the photo. When he found a symbol of triangle with torch inside it behind the group photo, his eyes steeled and his lips scowled. Everyone looked at Igor, the boys only stare in understanding while the girls were a bit in a shock and that's because it's their first time hearing about Igor being a former terrorist.

"Yes, it's been a while" Igor said to Theresa.

"Then I'd like you to explain how would these people operates" Theresa said to Igor.

"…These people, Mountain Dragons are one of the deadliest terrorist group on the planet to exist today. They are brutal, merciless and will strive to reach their goals no matter the cost. Their end goals? Spread their religion around the earth, its animism type of religion where they worshipped the spirit of a dragon" Igor explained out loud.

"And you used to believe in all that?" Rahn asked Igor.

"Whoa, not cool mate! You can't just-" James said to Rahn while frowning.

"He's not wrong…I used to believe in them, but things were different now…Anyway, for a bunch of terrorist group they also has former special-forces member among them. You could be certain that they're trained by the best and that resulted in them being good in subterfuge action" Igor further explained while frowning too.

Himeko switched the photo taken on multiple site with people being blindfolded and gagged, a blown building, several corpse of UNAF soldiers and even so far as a hacked satellite array with electricity sparking around it. Those were the photos taken as proof of Mountain Dragon Terrorism Activity, The Valkyries took careful look on the pictures…They will face humans in next operation, not Honkai creatures.

"Bombing, hostage taking, cyber warfare and even direct combat, they're good in all of those" Igor said further.

"…Well, if they could turn you into a killing machine this good? I don't doubt their strength" Gin said to Igor.

"Agreed on that" Han said out loud.

"Our undercover operator didn't manage to get all the details, but here's what they got…There would be an attack on Soukai in two days, the attack is large scaled in nature with dozens of them participating and lastly…this may involve terror attacks" Theresa explained to them.

Terror attacks on Soukai, it's quite symbolic in many ways. Soukai was proclaimed as a safe haven by people around the world so terror attacks on it would be some sort of message that the place wasn't that safe, in other news Soukai were basically a military garrison filled with enough military power to protect themselves against Honkai creatures or large scale human military forces…attacking Soukai would send a message that they were powerful enough to attack big garrison and spread their influence.

"…What's their target, aunty?" Kallen asked Theresa.

"We are not one hundred percent certain yet, but we have a prediction on what will they target. There's a masquerade ball that will be held in two days, sponsored by Schicksal and Saint Freya students are all invited" Theresa said while smiling.

This got the students attention as all of their heads turned simultaneously toward Theresa…Masquerade Ball, a social event where everyone got to dress in their own nice dress with mask that could hide their true identity. That would mean everyone on that event could launch an attack then slip away easily, this would be a major hurdle in itself…

"Wait, a masquerade ball? In two days? Really? Aunty Theresa, this is quite sudden!" Kiana said to Theresa.

"And all of us were invited?" Sakura asked Theresa.

"Let me change that, its mandatory to attend" Theresa said while grinning.

"…Shit just got real when the headmistress said that herself" Ryan muttered to himself.

Everyone were invited…That means Ryan and his Vikings would also have to attend. Wait a minute, did Ryan even had a suit or a costume? Let him thought for a bit and imagined his wardrobe…Let's see, boxer, speedo, socks, long pants, short pants, shirt, t-shirt, hoodie and jacket…Well fuck, Ryan was certain that he didn't owned any kind of suit…Shopping after school it is.

"Schicksal Far Eastern HQ were the ones who insisted to continue on with the event, despite the warning that there could be a terrorist strike against us. They said that The Vikings and The Valkyries on Saint Freya would be suited for guard job, it seems they were impressed with your performance on Operation Dawnbreaker" Theresa explained while smirking.

"That's flattering and all, but all out combat against terrorist couldn't be done discreetly" Han said with half closed eyes.

"What's the function of weapon's suppressor then?" Theresa asked with half closed eyes too.

"What I mean is that every firefight we might have if they indeed targeted this event would be quite noisy even with suppressor" Han said to Theresa.

Yeah, sounds of explosives, shouting and people dying as they got shot were still loud enough to disturb an event as loud as a Masquerade ball. How would they even fought a terrorist strike that had enough potential to be in tomorrow news headline quietly in the middle of Soukai's downtown? Every Vikings in the room scrutinized their eyebrows, deep in thought on how will they even make that possible.

"We'll blast full orchestra music and soundproof the ballroom if we have to, let us handle those little details. We want you boys and girls to prepare yourselves for perimeter defense, we'll brief you the full plan alongside the teams tomorrow. Oh, before I forgot, dress nicely" Theresa said to them.

"…Dress nicely? On perimeter defense? You know we would feel better to at least wear a combat suit or armor or something?" Gin asked Theresa.

"Yes, it's a masquerade ball after all, don't forget the mask too. Worry about your dress for now, we'll sort the gear tomorrow" Theresa said while folding her arms.

"Schicksal Far Eastern HQ VIPs will be present at the same time in one location. You want to know my thoughts? This is one hell of a bait, of course they won't want to cancel the event, it's basically their lure and we're the fish hook" Victoria expressed her thought.

"I do get that feeling too. It's possible that this Mountain Dragon group would send large amount of troops, eliminating them in one fell swoop is surely a chance they won't want to waste" Himeko said to Victoria.

"Oh yeah boys, bring a date" Theresa said suddenly.

"""""""…A what?""""""" The Vikings stared at Theresa with widened eyes.

"You heard me, a date. Someone to accompany you that evening, feel free to bring whoever you want…Just bring one" Theresa said while smiling.

A date for the event? Now this was what they called 'immersion'. Bringing a date would mean they only have today and tomorrow if they're going to ask someone, with limited time and option they have? That would be quite the challenge. That being said, five of The Vikings secretly eyed Ryan who sat between Kiana and Kallen…that cunt won't have a problem, he got six girls around him that he could ask anytime.

"…Huh, what if you bring six at once?" Han asked while grinning.

"You'll gain instant legendary status" Theresa replied with half closed eyes.

"I'm down for it!" Han said out loud while grinning.

"I'm being sarcastic, Lieutenant Han! That will attract too much attention!" Theresa said while frowning.

"You got a point. I don't keen on leaving my date alone for the evening in case I had to go fight terrorist though" Han said while shrugging.

"Fine. Those who would be standing by outside the ballroom wouldn't have to bring one. For those who did, prepare yourselves" Theresa modified the rules a bit.

"And who are those that will be on standby in ball room?" Ryan asked Theresa.

"Igor, Han, Gin and you" Theresa said nonchalantly.

The mentioned Vikings looked at Theresa before looking at each other, the four of them were the ones who could be categorized as The Vikings who were quite versatile and able to adapt to any battlefield situations. It seemed Theresa had given the guard detail some thoughts already, but the real hurdle for them would be to find a date…

"…I sensed trouble ahead" Gin said out loud.

"You're quite perceptive eh?" Han asked sarcastically.

"And we, the girls doesn't have to bring a date?" Fuuka asked Theresa.

"You girls with your fellow Valkyries and several Vikings will join the guards, patrolling the area and helping them with security on the ballroom. For the four of you that I've mentioned, you will be stationed alongside the VIPs…For you girls who are chosen as a date, then you will also be stationed in the ballroom" Theresa further explained.

"And the VIPs are?" Mei asked Theresa.

"The Far Eastern HQ official and The Seven Freya Ladies" Theresa explained while smirking.

Every student in the room did a double back at the mention of that title, that means seven students safety's would be their main responsibilities alongside the top regional brass that decided to visit. Guarding one person was hard enough, how will they be able to protect such group? Not to mention, Theresa only put four men as the primary guards!

"Wait, what!?" Kallen blurted out.

"They're VIPs?" Sakura asked Theresa.

"Yes…Some of their parents were major fund contributors to Schicksal and important figures…They will represent their parents on the ball, attending alongside the officials" Theresa explained to them.

"…Han, you didn't know about this?" Ryan asked to Han who sat behind him.

"…Yeah, this one slipped from me" Han answered while frowning.

"That will be all for now, we'll send the details later" Theresa said to end the meeting.

.

"So, that's what's been plaguing me" Ryan said to Faina.

"Oh my, that's quite problematic…There's this one shop in downtown that might have some in stock, but I'm not sure if it still open or not tonight" Faina said with her left hand on her left cheek.

"I see, thanks for the info, manager" Ryan smiled to Faina.

"Anytime. It's not rush hour yet so take it easy, alright?" Faina said to Ryan.

"Will do" Ryan said with a thumbs up.

Faina smiled as she left the staff room while leaving Ryan seated with his work uniform, yeah as expected he's a bit in a bind on where's the best place to get suit and a mask as well…Ryan continue his musing that he didn't realize someone entered the room he's in, Clair was humming absentmindedly as she entered the staff room. After three second passed, Clair and Ryan both sensed each other presence and looked at each other…

"…Hey there, it seems you're doing fine already" Clair said to Ryan.

"Oh, yeah. H-Hey, listen…It looks like I've did something horrible to you few days ago, Clair…I'm sorry" Ryan said while smiling awkwardly.

"Well I wouldn't call it horrible" Clair said as she opened her locker.

"Huh?" Ryan was taken aback.

"I got kissed by a handsome guy which I admit have attraction to, why would I hate that?" Clair asked without looking at Ryan.

"Huh? Wait, what? You're serious?" Ryan asked in surprised tone.

…Did Clair just confessed to him? No, Ryan felt that he jumped the gun with that thought. She said she's interested in him, that doesn't mean Clair was attracted to him romantically or even love him, right? But yeah, Clair was definitely the boldest girl he ever met, Kiana came in second as these girls weren't afraid to show their emotions and intentions. Ryan was about to continue when he noticed that Clair started taking her clothes off…

"…I'm still here, you know?" Ryan said to Clair.

"So?" Clair asked as she grabbed her working uniform.

"Don't you feel embarrassed?" Ryan asked Clair, his eyes can't helped but wander.

"It's just my underwear, it didn't bother me that much. Besides, I'm giving you a free show. Don't you find me attractive, Ryan?" Clair asked Ryan.

And she did that while looking back with smug smile on her face alongside posing a little, Ryan found that to be hot enough to get him started sweating for a bit. He'll admit that Clair was a hot babe, she's beautiful, she got modest chest, accentuated curves, supple ass, shaped thighs…Oh man, the longer he stare the more he sensed something's ready to fire and it's not his M1911H hand cannon.

"Only blind guy would say no to this view, your bold and daring personality also a plus" Ryan commented while smirking.

"Good. Then I still have fighting chance" Clair said while smiling and turning around.

…Now Ryan was even more confused, fighting chance against what? Why would she need a fighting chance for? Man, girls were confusing sometimes. Ryan wasn't the one to waste this opportunity though, he continued to stare from behind as Clair put on her working attire. He was so tempted to take out his phone and snapped a picture, but he won't take chances after what happened between her and him few days ago.

"You also slapped me few days ago when I kissed you, Clair" Ryan said awkwardly.

"That's because I hated it when you do it so thoughtlessly…If you're going to kiss me, then do it after you think about it thoroughly…Now, we're good with that incident, yes?" Clair asked Ryan while smiling a bit.

"If you're fine with it, then so do I" Ryan answered as he relented.

"Perfect. Now let's get out there before Faina chew us both" Clair said as she took his right hand and dragged him to exit.

Ryan smiled and nodded his head as a respond, both Clair and Ryan exited the staff room and head to the restaurant area to earn their paychecks. Ryan find his work as a waiter as a nice change of pace for him, he could alleviate some tense from his daily routine. Serving dishes to customers compared to serving bullets to a target, interacting while smiling with customers compared to shouting orders in middle of gunfire storm. Ah…peaceful.

"Ryan-kun, we'd like to order!" Someone said.

"Coming!" Ryan answered while smiling.

His eyes widened a bit when he saw Mei, Kiana, Bronya, Kallen and Sakura seated near the entrance with Mei waving and smiling at him. All of them wearing their casual clothes already…Ryan walked towards them, he smiled as one thing popped in his head…easy money. How? Well, the audience will know soon the one cheap trick to get easy money. Businessman hate them for this!

"Let me guess. Three iced tea, one cappuccino, one coffee, one hamburger steak extra-large, one spaghetti, one fried rice with chicken breast, one pancake with honey and one chicken soup" Ryan said while grinning.

"…Ryan-kun, that's quite presumptuous" Mei said with half closed eyes.

Now that derailed his thoughts and fantasy as Ryan stared back at Mei with widened eyes…Did you know why Ryan was so confident in listing all of those? Basically, out of 9 to 10 visit conducted by the girls he knew and seated on this table? They will order specifically those items!

"Eh? Really? None of those hit the spot!?" Ryan asked with widened eyes.

"Except for the drinks, you got everything wrong" Sakura answered while smiling amusedly.

"We'd like to try something new today!" Kallen said while grinning.

"Ha! Pay up, Ryan!" Clair said from behind.

"Man, I'm so regretting saying that" Ryan said while scowling.

"You two were betting?" Mei asked to Clair.

"Yeah, it's an employee tradition on Celestial Clarity. Anyone who can guess the customer orders correctly would earn easy money, we could only do that to our regulars though" Clair explained to the girls.

That's the little game that existed between employee on Celestial Clarity, Faina was reluctant to let this idea ran but seeing this could improve the working spirit and kept things interesting she eventually allowed it. With several rules that the employee could only do this to a regular and the amount they bet would not exceed twenty credits, the game had run for two years at least and so far so good.

"…Ryan, have Ryan thought on who will Ryan take as a date?" Bronya asked Ryan.

The whole restaurant filled with mostly ladies immediately fell silent at that question being thrown at Ryan, he looked around to notice the sudden noise absence before the patrons returned to their own business in matter of two seconds. The man in question could also only smile wryly pondering his own answer, guessed he chose to go with the truth.

"Yeah, I'm still thinking about it" Ryan answered while smiling a bit.

"Is it for The Masquerade Ball that'll be held in two days? Well you could've asked me, Ryan" Clair said to Ryan while smirking.

"Hahahahaha…Ah, Clair, sorry but maybe next time. This would heavily involve the combat division, so I'll have to pick my date carefully" Ryan said apologetically.

"Ah…with Schicksal HQ official coming here and Principal Theresa telling me to keep the list of attendance a secret, so it does involve our combat division" Clair said as she looked at The Valkyries.

"At least you knew that security would be tight. I could only bring one girl" Ryan said out loud.

"You said this involved the combat division. Who would you like your date to be?" Mei asked Ryan.

Mei asked a very good question…Ryan already settled the thought about bringing a date but he's adamant that his date should at least knew how to fight, they might face an assassin so he'd like his date to be less dependent on him for protection and that would allow him more ease when he have to protect the VIPs…the question remains, who to take?

"…We're about to be VIP guard, with possible assassin appearing before us…Then I would need someone specialized in unarmed close quarter combat, but could be taken away from the guards rooster without jeopardizing the overall guard composition" Ryan said his thoughts.

"…What the hell are you talking about?" Clair asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Who to bring…Ah! Kallen! Date me!" Ryan said as he stared at Kallen.

"Sure…Eh!? Mich?!" Kallen was shocked that she spoke German for a bit.

"Sorry, that came out a bit wrong but yes. I'm asking you to be my date for the event" Ryan said to Kallen with serious face.

"Did I really fit that criteria you're looking for!?" Kallen asked Ryan, her cheeks reddened for a bit.

"Yeah! Bringing Mei and Sakura would took away our blade fighters, Bronya is surely required to help with technological monitoring, Fuuka surely needed on the frontline and Kiana…I was in dilemma between you and Kallen but then I remembered Kiana might be needed as sniper over watch, your accuracy were quite good so taking you will be a great loss" Ryan said to the girls.

According to him, that's a reasonable hypothesis on why should he brought Kallen as his date instead the other girls. Kallen was proficient with handgun, she's more than good with her close quarter combat techniques and she's definitely able to take on any kind of adversary. Overall, she's balanced across the board so she will definitely suit him as his partner for the evening…But yeah, the other girls looked at him with unhappy face.

"…I know it'll end like this" Mei said while smiling bitterly.

"…Ryan only thought about this tactically" Bronya said with a small frown.

"…Shame it's the case" Sakura said as she looked away to the window.

"…Why do I feel happy yet disappointed at the same time?" Kiana said as she scowled.

"Come on, Kiana. He implied there will be another chance in the future" Clair said while grinning.

"Um…sorry about this" Ryan cringed awkwardly.

""""Fine…"""" Mei, Sakura, Bronya and Kiana replied.

"…What do you say, Kallen? Up for dressing nicely and maybe preventing some big shot dying like in those dramas?" Ryan asked Kallen while smiling.

"Since you asked nicely…Yes, looking forward to it" Kallen replied while smiling.

.

…Two days went by fast and the time has come for The Masquerade Ball to start, the event currently held in a ten-story large multipurpose building at downtown area of Soukai. Hundreds of people started converging on the area as sun had started to set in the west, as the guest taking in the marvel of the extravagantly decorated building, the mouth-watering smell of the freshly cooked food laid out in buffet style, drink fountains that were filled with sweet wine laid out in all corner of the large room, the orchestra band was raring to show off their skill, it will be a pleasant night for sure.

But for those who worked behind the scene? Things had been hectic for the last two hours. The kitchen were still busy as they kept producing food, the committee in charge of the event kept going back and forth to make sure everyone and equipment's working in order and the local security team had been constantly on alert for anything suspicious. Soon, the VIPs would arrive and that's when Task Force Terra would be needed.

…Kallen checked herself for one last time in the mirror of her apartment, she took one long look at herself. She put on light make up, accentuating her already rosy colored lips and light blue eyes. Every straight man that looked at her would probably said she's one hell of a beautiful girl, Kallen then look on her outfit. Her outfit was (Shit, I'm no good at explaining her clothes. For reference of her clothes visualization? You guessed it, just take a look at her Sixth Serenade Valkyrie suit, it's basically the same thing) a reminiscence of Renaissance Era nobility clothes alongside a black bird mask.

To tell the truth, this clothes was actually the clothes her mother sew for her graduation drama play back on middle school. It still fits her well so why not use it for this masquerade ball? It fits the theme quite well…Kallen started to wonder about her date for tonight, what will he use as his costume she wondered? Perhaps a gallant prince like costume? Nobility clothes would fit him nicely in Kallen's opinion, she do hope it'll be the case because then their costume would fit with each other. Suddenly, the front door was knocked.

"Coming!" Kallen said as she walked.

Kallen opened the door and she fell into silence after that, all because what she saw in front of her. There stood her date for tonight, Ryan Taurus wearing Victorian era gentleman dress with black cape, a walking cane and a top hat. He wore half opera mask with smile on its lips and colored black to fit in with the rest of his dark clothing, his hair was combed into neat slick back style…He certainly put some time into his dress.

"Evening my dear, you look gorgeous" Ryan said while smiling.

"Well, well, you look handsome yourself. Looks like our outfit matched even without any planning huh?" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Yeah, I was surprised too…Oh well, shall we go?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Mhm, let's go" Kallen said as she grabbed her small handbag and locked the apartment.

Both of them proceeded to walk out of the apartment, with Ryan taking hold of her hand. Kallen gasped in surprise but she let him, this doesn't feel bad at all. Ryan was showing confidence on his face but deep down he was confused at himself when he suddenly took Kallen's hand before leading her outside…oh well, Kallen doesn't seemed to mind so he'll go along.

"Where's Sakura, Kallen?" Ryan asked her.

"She already went on ahead, meeting up with Mei and the rest near school" Kallen answered.

"I see…Well the place is a bit far on downtown, let's take a ride" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Hmm? You have a ride?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Yeah, I rarely got any use for it though" Ryan said as he stopped in front of a car.

In front of them was a crimson red Mazda RX-8 sedan parked on the apartment parking lot, now Kallen widened her eyes in realization. So this was Ryan's car? She always wondered on who owned this car as it's parked here most of the time, why did Ryan never got out using this car? Ryan unlocked the door and both of them went inside. Everything still looks new, there's no decoration whatsoever.

"All of this still new" Kallen commented.

"Yeah, because I rarely used it" Ryan said as he revved the engine on.

"Why?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Never go out too far from apartment anyway…But I do kept it washed regularly" Ryan said to Kallen.

But the maintenance was quite a hassle, he didn't really have much money to begin with. The story went like this…Ryan arrived at Soukai with an apartment and a car waiting for him, from Schicksal themselves who maybe felt like since his their asset now they want to make him as comfortable as possible. But unfortunately, the apartment was quite noisy and Ryan opted to move out after few months enduring the nonsense…he kept the car obviously.

The ride to downtown was filled with ambience slow jazz music that Ryan set on the car radio, Kallen leaned on her seat and subtly gazed on his face…His wound that was stitched already starting to heal faster, how did that happen? She guessed Ryan was the type that got his wound healed quicker than average person. It won't be long before they could take out the thread, but that face would never returned to its original smoothness without help…

Kallen looked down on her feet…she suffered some injuries too in the past mission but her skin managed to return to normal with Schicksal latest medical care. Ryan had all the chances he got and still he decided to postponed the treatment until his wound completely closed up…When Kallen asked for his reason, he simply answered 'Let this serve as a reminder of my mistake for a bit. I'll get it fixed later after the skin close naturally'.

The car stopped in front of a building, both Ryan and Kallen got out of the car and stared at the ten-story building on the other side of the road. This building would be the place where the event will be held, almost a thousand people will come to this place. Unfortunately, this wasn't a real date for the two of them because they will participate in a mission and their dress was for the sake of immersion…Still, Kallen would like to immerse that she's on a date for tonight just a bit…at least until the illusion shattered by the terrorist.

"Ah good, you're both here. Let's get started immediately" Himeko said to Ryan and Kallen.

Inside the designated large safe room Ryan and Kallen were the last member to arrive on site, everyone already present and stared at Himeko who stood in front of the podium about to brief Task Force Terra of their mission. Kallen glanced around and saw that everyone already on their own costumes. There were total of fourteen Vikings who were healthy enough to perform a mission and thirty Valkyries gathered in the room, quite a guarding force they got here.

"I will go over with tonight's plan, we'll commence Operation Hollow Gate in less than ten minutes so I want everyone to pay attention" Himeko said out loud.

"You heard her guys, gather around!" Someone said.

Ryan looked at the person who said that and he's surprised to saw Namira wearing aqua colored strapless dress while carrying her mask on her left hand, she looked around when she noticed Ryan stared at her in surprise which she replied by waving casually at him. Everyone huddled close to the podium, Himeko made sure everyone paid attention to her before she continued.

"Alright, I'll brief us on the mission tonight. Our mission is consisted of two primary objectives, guarantee the safety of our VIPs and secure the civilians in case of major terrorist attack. If the attack happened, our priority is to get the VIPs out of here and secure the civilians whatever the cost. Be sure to remember the evacuation route and exit points, if gunshot erupts I guarantee that room will be a chaotic mess within seconds" Himeko said to her operatives.

There's a lot of speculation and theory on how will the attack proceed tonight, that resulted in a lot of thought up countermeasures. But their primary focus would be the safety of the VIPs and the civilians, at the same time they won't want to create panic and have the guest ran away from the event…That means this mission was needed to be kept under wraps.

"All of you already got your positions and roles, stick to it until situation demand you to leave it. Stay vigilant, anticipate any kind of threats and don't let your guard down...Let's get this done and go home, everyone get me?" Himeko asked out loud.

""""""""""Yes ma'am!"""""""""" Everyone on the room answered.

"Major Murata, it's me. We're inbound from the airport, Estimated Time of Arrival is ten minutes" Victoria contacted Himeko on the radio.

"Understood. Any change of plans?" Himeko asked Victoria.

"Wait a moment…Sitrep, Lens One…Understood, Code Yellow…Yes, change of plans, Major. Our Intel just pinged us, we'll use route C, Code Yellow" Victoria said to Himeko.

"Roger that, Major. See you in ten…Did you get that? Code Yellow, get to your positions everyone. Operation Hollow Gate is a go! Move it people!" Himeko barked her orders.

Task Force Terra, consisted of forty-four operators saluted at Himeko before dispersing to their position to fulfill their roles. Ryan approached Namira who just stored her spear into her phase shifter that she must've hid somewhere Ryan couldn't see, he was glad to see that Namira was healthy and that the bridge explosion few days ago didn't cripple her in anyway.

"Namira, good to see you alright" Ryan said while smiling.

"Just some nasty bruises and got my back burned for a bit, nothing too lethal. I still got a lot of fight in me" Namira said while grinning.

"I see…be careful alright? And Good luck on this one" Ryan said seriously while nodding.

"You too, Ryan. But it seems I'll need it more than you, this is your specialization" Namira said while smiling at him.

"Don't worry, you'll do well if what I heard about you were true" Ryan said to encourage her.

"Fufufufu, thanks for the compliment…Let's just do our best" Namira said before she offered her right fist.

"Agreed. See you" Ryan bumped his left fist with hers while smiling.

Ryan met with Kallen on the way out of the room, he offered his left arm to her and she took it while smiling knowingly. Both of them then approached the enclosed ballroom, after confirming they're included in the VIP list and the fact they're the guards too, the local security personnel opened the door that lead to the ballroom. Both Kallen and Ryan put on their mask, its show time.

The orchestra band was already in full swing when they entered the ballroom, some people already dancing in the large space surrounded by round tables. People mingled on all over the room, most of them were talking, some enjoying the food and drinks while others just stood still or walking around the room minding their own business…Kallen looked around her, it looks like Ryan and her managed to get the attention of nearby people with their dress...She smirked a bit, their dress was definitely on point.

"Igor, Adriana" Ryan suddenly said that Kallen was startled.

"Ryan" Igor replied.

"Ah, Ryan. It's been a while, oh your face!" Adriana said as she covered her gaping mouth.

"Yeah, a souvenir I brought back home" Ryan said while smiling bitterly.

Igor and Adriana approached Ryan and Kallen who just entered the ballroom, Kallen put on some polite smile as she stared at Igor who wore a tux with zorro mask and Adriana who wore grey dress with white mask on her face. Who was this girl? She's definitely Igor's date for tonight but what's her real relationship with him? Though asking that wouldn't make a good impression.

"Please be careful next time, don't ruin that handsome face of yours. Which reminds me you haven't told me what happened during that mission, Igor" Adriana said to Ryan then Igor.

"Moya zhena Adrianna, I couldn't exactly tell you everything, Schicksal has tight regulation for this" Igor said as he frowned.

"Still I would like some explanation, don't leave your wife in the dark like this, Igor" Adriana said as she put on her right index finger on Igor's chest.

"…Da, da. When we get home, khoroso?" Igor relented as he put his hands on Adriana's shoulder.

"Khoroso" Adriana answered while smirking.

"Ah, right. Adrianna, meet my date for tonight. This girl is Kallen Kaslana" Ryan introduced Kallen to Adriana.

"My, what a beauty you brought tonight! I'm Adrianna Kamarov, it's nice to meet you Ms. Kallen" Adriana greeted Kallen while smiling.

"Thank you and likewise! I'm Kallen Kaslana, Igor's classmate. So you're Igor's wife, you're quite beautiful as well" Kallen said while also smiling.

"Oh thanks. Say, why don't we grab some drinks and might as well have some lady talk?" Adriana asked Kallen.

"I'll take on the offer" Kallen said while smiling.

"Splendid! Well boys, see you in a bit" Adriana said as she took Kallen's hand and set off.

""Sure…"" Ryan and Igor said simultaneously.

Both girls headed for the buffet table leaving Ryan and Igor standing in the middle of the room being gawked by group of girls, they will wait patiently for their respective dates but in the meantime, they opted to sat on the nearest table and effectively booking it.

"…Fancy outing eh?" Ryan said to Igor.

"This is not just some fancy outing, Ryan. It's also an escort mission for Task Force Terra, Vikings and Valkyries Joint Operation" Igor said to Ryan.

"I know that already. Loosen up a little, Igor. This is a party" Ryan said to Igor with cocked eyebrows.

"…Yeah…I guess I'm just nervous, surely they will recognize me easily" Igor said as he scanned the room.

"Doesn't matter. Just leave none alive and that should solve your identity issue" Ryan said to Igor.

"Heh…you're a bit too casual, tovarisch" Igor stared at Ryan amusedly.

"What can I say? It's a ball. When in Rome, do as The Romans do. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment before all hell break loose" Ryan said while shrugging.

Igor nodded his head as he stared at his wife and Kallen talking about something near the buffet table, both of them laughing and smiling while talking about something…It's been a while since Igor saw Adriana talking animatedly like that, it looks like they could become fast friends…Kallen seemed like the person that could befriend anybody if she wanted to, Adriana also naturally a friendly and open person…well, this was a natural outcome.

"…it's a good thing I've brought her here" Igor suddenly said.

"Adriana? Maybe…why did you ask her to come with you in the first place? You do know the state of our mission?" Ryan asked Igor.

"Lately she's been working a bit too much, we're a bit tight on money this week. Add to the fact I've gone missing for two days in previous mission…I brought her here so she could enjoy herself, she could still fight despite her condition but…Maybe it's just my selfishness as a husband, I just want my wife to take a break" Igor said to Ryan.

"That proved you cared about her, I see nothing wrong with that. It's your duty to remind her if she's pushing herself too much, what caring husband want his wife to collapse from over exhaustion? Just don't overthink it, I'm sure she appreciate what you've did for her sake" Ryan said to Igor while smiling a bit.

"Vozmozhno…Da, spasibo tovarisch" Igor said while smiling widely.

"You're welcome. You're using Russian a lot tonight" Ryan noted as he leaned back on his seat.

"Just felt like it because this event reminds me of home for a bit, back before I was indoctrinated by Mountain Dragons I went to this kind of event too" Igor confessed as he also leaned on his seat.

"I see" Ryan nodded his head.

Ryan just now got a little insight on how did Igor experienced his life as a husband, despite how he acted and how brutal he can be to his enemies it was clear that his wife was always on his mind and he loved her so much. He didn't show it, he didn't said it but it was clear in his interaction with her. Ryan wished the big guy the best of luck, he'll need it…especially if they're planning for kids.

"Ah mein freunde! There you are!" Han said as he approached them.

"Huh…Whoa, you do have a date tonight" Ryan said as he saw a girl behind Han.

"Naturlich! Threresa said so! She's Bella Fastoria, my date for tonight. Bella, these two here are Ryan Taurus and Igor Kamarov, my brothers in arms" Han introduced the girl.

The girl was beautiful…come to think of it, Ryan thought that Soukai was filled with beautiful girls…eh, it's not like he minded that fact. Bella Fastoria was one of The Seven Freya Ladies who possessed waist long white hair complemented with two side braids, her skin was pale white, her ocean blue eyes looked gentle, with E cup boobs and plump ass complimenting her…Whoa, Han sure knew his taste.

"Pleased to meet you two, please call me Bella" Bella said while smiling gently.

"Wait. Bella…Fastoria? Why do I get a feeling one of your parents spend a bit too much time on mobile games?" Igor suddenly asked.

"Hm? Oh, yes, my father do fancy that ship girls game. Coincidentally, Belfast was my nickname. They said I resemble her too, it's all one big coincidence" Bella explained to Igor.

"You're one of The Seven Freya Ladies, I've heard a bit about you from Han" Ryan said while smiling too.

"Really? What exactly you've told them?" Bella asked Han while smirking.

"That you're the prettiest girl I ever laid my eyes on, with the sweetest smile and great personality? Ja, just the truth" Han said with the most serious face he ever put on his usual goofy face.

"Han Muller, you flatterer" Bella said, a tint of red could be seen on her cheeks.

"I have my moments" Han replied suavely while winking.

…Ryan and Igor looked at each other and they strived hard not to cringed on the sight of the persona Han was using…Han was known among them to be the goofy bastard with smart brain but had tendency to do stupid things for the lols, did any of them ever saw him dating someone? No, this was the first time and this image shattering event really put Igor and Ryan out of the loop…Yeah, discovering your friend's new side weren't always comfortable.

Igor nudged at Ryan's waist and Ryan did the same to Igor, both looked at each other before Igor sighed and nodded his head. Igor approached Bella and started asking her questions while Ryan grabbed Han by his vest and walked few steps away before he began his interrogation, Ryan will get to the bottom of this one way or another.

"…Okay, I need some explanation. How did you manage to ask one of them to go as your date?" Ryan asked Han.

"I could only bring plus one with me…A partner, a date, for tomorrow's masquerade ball…just one girl…Try combination of that alongside impulsive decision and suicidal tendencies so here we are, I've known her for two weeks already. I also think being the date for one of the VIPs would make the job easier, no? Beside, she's the one I'm interested out of the other girls…" Han confessed truthfully.

"…You gave out some dastardly advice three days ago about these girls and me, Han" Ryan said while frowning.

"I'm kidding about that, there's no way you got the balls to do it!" Han said with cocked eyebrows.

"Ho? What did you just said?" Ryan squinted his eyes.

"Besides, if you really serious about it then I would declare war on you in a heartbeat to win Bella over…I'm not joking" Han looked at Ryan with serious face.

Han was a human nonetheless, him having feelings for a girl then asking her out on a date was an understandable action. Though, he went straight for the high class girl…Oh well, it's his choice and if he fucked up then let's hope it won't impacted The Vikings overall reputation. Ryan took Han's left shoulder, patted it before staring at him with eyes lack of conviction for the words he's about to say.

"Huh, good thing I was sensible person…Good luck to you man…just take it nice and slow" Ryan said to Han.

"Of course I will, who do you think I am?" Han asked with cocked eyebrows.

"Hormonal Bastard Beast?" Ryan answered with half closed eyes.

"Hee hoo, hold the fuck up! What makes you say that?!" Han looked really offended with that sentence.

"…You're attitude for the past month! If you want to get serious with her, be my guest but for fuck sake get your act together outside the academy, Han…Don't toy with her feelings nor make trouble for her, wakattaka omae?" Ryan said with serious face.

Han was about to retort before his eyes widened in realization, Ryan did not joke about this one…He seriously telling Han to get his shit together if he want to proceed with this path, lot of things were at stake…If he did proceed with this path, then he would need to stop messing around. Bella didn't deserve the fallout for the dastardly act he had committed these past few days or in the future…His action would no longer only affect himself.

"…Point taken, will do sir" Han answered with serious face.

Ryan only smiled in satisfaction and slapped Han's back, the said man was startled before he also smiled for a bit then the both of them joined Igor and Bella who were still in the middle of a conversation. A ping on the ear plug radio alerted the three Vikings, looks like someone would be giving a report on the current situation.

"Guard One. This is Oversight, the VIPs have arrived" It's Kiana who said that on the radio.

"Excellent. Including the ladies?" Ryan asked Kiana on the radio.

"Yeah, they're entering the building now. They're yours, we'll continue to monitor the perimeter, Oversight out" Kiana said to Ryan on the radio.

Bella head over to the designated VIP seat while the three Vikings prepared to receive the others coming their way, Ryan, Han and Igor checked on their attire and made sure nothing was amiss. What kind of important person will they meet tonight? Ryan did hope they won't be a troublesome person, he really didn't want to include 'silencing your objectives' as one of his activity tonight…

"Ready to meet them commander? The Seven Freya Ladies?" Han asked Ryan.

"Yeah…we'll represent The Vikings so let's tone down the barbarism for a bit" Ryan said to Han.

"Aren't we supposed to be barbaric?" Han asked back with cocked eyebrows.

"Not during refined party such as this!" Ryan retorted with serious face.

The VIPs appeared before them but one person was far ahead the others and walking side by side with Victoria who wore light green dress, that person had almost the same green hair as Ryan. Ryan eyes widened for a bit, he looked at the woman carefully and spotted that she had maroon colored eyes. He dropped his shoulder slightly at the revelations, but nevertheless he pull himself back up and went to greet the both of them.

"Ah, The Vikings! I've always wanted to meet you boys in person, the tales I've heard were quite inspiring. My name's Maya Koizumi, I'm the head of Far Eastern Schicksal Division" Maya said while smiling.

"Nice to meet you Koizumi-san, I'm Ryan Taurus. Here's my fellow Vikings, Han Muller and Igor Kamarov" Ryan said to Maya.

"I see. Good evening gentlemen, how does the night fare?" Maya asked Han and Igor.

"It's still young, but I'm glad it's enjoyable so far" Han pulled off a diplomatic smile.

"What he said" Igor simply said, his face remain stoic.

"Splendid. Let's enjoy this night, shall we" Maya said while smiling.

"Please follow me to our seat. You boys, join in once your date is done with their business" Victoria said to them.

"""Yes ma'am""" Ryan, Han and Igor said simultaneously.

Victoria and Maya moved to the designated VIP seating, it didn't took long until Kallen and Adriana returned to their position. There they met Bella and another conversation started, why did girls always took so long when chatting like this? Kallen noticed the boys were getting restless while looking at the VIP seats, she suggested they continued the talk later then all of them started walking away.

"Hey Ryan, is that our VIP?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Yeah…but something's not right" Ryan said to Kallen.

"What do you mean?" Kallen asked again.

"She's but one lady, Theresa said 'officials' two days ago…where are the others?" Ryan said to Kallen.

"Right...Command, this is Guard Two. Is there only one official for tonight?" Kallen contacted Himeko.

"Yes, Guard Squad, change your radio to Channel Six temporarily" Himeko said on the radio.

So there's some details that weren't told to them, guessed they're not high ranking enough to know. That reminded Ryan, where's Theresa? She never intended to participate in this ball didn't she? If she did, she would already be present right now…

"As you might already aware, this is a decoy operation. The other officials would be meeting elsewhere" Himeko said on the radio.

"…Really? But the head of Far Eastern branch is here! If they are meeting somewhere else, why leave the main head here?" Kallen asked Himeko.

"If you're going to set a trap, then the bait must be convincing. Apparently, she's also the mother of one of our VIPs, Ayane Koizumi" Himeko further explained.

"…Say what?" Ryan blurted out.

"Yeah, I also just knew about this. Stay to the plan, Guard Squad" Himeko said then disconnected.

…So Maya had a daughter that coincidentally was one of The Seven Freya Ladies, how could this detail slipped them? Ryan started to feel uncomfortable with how many things that he didn't know about tonight's mission. He's awfully lacked in knowing the details such as who were the VIPs tonight…Why did this happen? The mission briefing yesterday did not involve background check for these VIPs for god sake. Ryan took mental note to address this issue so this won't happen in the future…

"Kallen, I just realized this" Ryan suddenly said.

"What is it?" Kallen asked curiously.

"I don't know how to dance" Ryan confessed.

"Huh? Really?" Kallen eyes widened in surprise.

"Yeah, this is my first ball. I've did folklore dance back during middle school, but not European Waltz or something like that" Ryan said to Kallen.

This got Kallen to did a double back for a bit, Ryan didn't have any trouble with anything as far as she knew him…but it turns out he did have something that he's not skilled at, that's quite refreshing to say the least. Kallen had presumed Ryan could be thrown into any kind of situation and he'll be alright…It's good that he won't be thrown into any mission that require him to blend in by dancing when she's not around.

"...Fufufufu" Kallen giggled at the thought.

"Gee, good to know you find this funny" Ryan said while smiling uncomfortably.

"No, you didn't have any trouble with displaying your skills so far. It's quite unexpected to know you didn't know how to dance" Kallen smirked a bit.

"Huh…well, I suppose you could give me a quick course when we have to dance?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Easy. I've did this since elementary school, you're in good hands" Kallen said then winked.

"Nice" Ryan exclaimed.

They reached the VIP table and met the other VIPs who already arrived earlier but choose to mingle with the other guest, Han was right because these girls definitely earned their title. There's six of them currently approaching the seat, all dressed beautifully. Ryan noticed that Adriana subtly pinched Igor's left waist while pouting, he chuckled at the scene which earned him a subtle glare from Igor.

"Hey Ryan, Kallen. You two are the definition of those crime drama's characters" Clair said as she approached them.

"Thanks Clair, you look good yourself" Kallen replied.

"Haha, and you're the depiction of prom queen" Ryan replied smoothly.

"Oh please, my dress is not that extravagant" Clair said to Ryan.

"Maybe, but I'm talking about the gorgeous lady instead of the dress" Ryan said while winking.

"Whoa, thank you handsome devil" Clair smiled mischievously.

The three of them seated themselves alongside the others, Kallen however kept her eyes on Ryan. She's furrowing her brows and she's pouted, wasn't she's the date for tonight? Then why did Ryan flirt with the other girl? This might not be a real date because of the mission…but it didn't hurt to at least pretend…Ryan sensed Kallen was staring at him, he saw her looking like that so he asked.

"What?" Ryan asked while being clueless.

"Nothing…" Kallen said while looking away.

But Ryan was not a complete bumbling idiot when it comes to read the mood, although he's not a Casanova who could always tell what's a girl thinking (Bullshit, this creature doesn't exist!) he at least knew when he fucked up. He knew Kallen was upset with him, but why…Ah shit, he flirted with Clair blatantly in front of her. She's his date for tonight even if this wasn't a real date, he should treat her better.

"Hey Kallen" Ryan called her.

"Yeah?" Kallen responded without looking.

"Sorry about before" Ryan said while smiling apologetically.

"…Huh, you're not that dense" Kallen looked at Ryan while smiling amusedly.

"Actually I was being presumptuous but glad I got the mark…How can I make up to you?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"Hmm…let me save that favor for later, this ball limited what I can request to you" Kallen said while smirking.

"Oh, if that's how you want to play it…Guard Three, where are you?" Ryan asked on the radio.

Guard Three or Gin Yamato for his name was currently standing on third floor inner balcony of the ballroom, he surveyed the whole room before he spotted Ryan alongside the others already seated on the VIP table. Gin was dressed in white suit, white pants and black shoes. He wore basic white mask that only covered his upper face part…

"…On the western balcony, I've got the whole room surveyed" Gin said to Ryan.

"Anything suspicious?" Ryan asked Gin.

"You're asking me to scan almost a thousand people here, it's a bit hard. I got the VIP table within my sight though" Gin said to Ryan.

"Come down here then, we'll begin the event shortly. By the way, did you bring a date?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Roger…Well, that's a bit complicated. I'll see you there, out...Ayane, let's head down" Gin said to someone behind him.

"Huh?" Ayane said suddenly.

"Your Okaa-sama is here. You need to greet her" Gin further said.

That someone was Ayane Koizumi, a girl with shoulder length green hair and amethyst colored eyes stared at Gin. Any bystander would most likely gossiped about this if there's anyone around them right now, the balcony on the third floor of the western side was devoid of anyone else other than the two of them. Gin was about to walk toward the stairs before he felt something grabbed his hand.

"Oh no, we're not done with our talk yet!" Ayane said to Gin.

"You want to talk about that here?" Gin asked Ayane.

"Yes before you disappear again! Gin, answer me truthfully! You stayed behind when you supposed to evacuate, you survived all of that fiasco on Japan for two years and you knew I'm going to Soukai…Why? Why do you took so long to search for me? I'm waiting all these years for you! I'm worried when I heard the news! So why!?" Ayane relentlessly asked Gin.

…Gin could safely said, what a clusterfuck he got himself into. A bit of history lesson, Gin and Ayane knew each other since they were in elementary school. Both of their houses were beside each other, both of their parents were good friends too and both of them definitely close with each other…Gin admitted he's being absolute dickbag for not contacting and searching her when he's alive, but he do have a reason…

"…I just knew about you being in the same school when my friend mentioned your name and even then I'm not sure if it's really you…Ayane, we can talk about this after this ball is over. I'm a soldier now, I'm no longer that kid who like to carry wooden sword around anymore…Right now, I have orders to follow" Gin answered with serious face.

"…Then at least answer this! Is your words back when I'm about to go still hold true?" Ayane asked Gin.

Ayane looked down while frowning, Gin face hardened at the sight as he took her left hand. He noticed that she wore a ring in her ring finger, silver ring with vine engravings. That ring was the one he gift to her when she's about to move abroad, a promise that he won't forget her and he will see her again no matter the cost…He also said one thing before she left, a promise that he still strive to fulfill.

"It is and it won't change…I have so much to tell you and I also want to listen to your stories. Just please be patient for a bit longer alright?" Gin asked her while smiling gently.

"…When this ball is over, you're not going anywhere! Got it?" Ayane said while pouting.

"Understood" Gin simply replied while grinning.

Gin and Ayane made their way down to the VIP table, Ayane clung at him all the way down not letting him out of her sight even for a moment. Their meeting today was a complete coincidence, the fact that they're on the same school yet different division made their chance of encounter very slim…But, Gin was glad that his search was over.

Ayane may had come from a wealthy family but her social exposure was quite low, even now he wondered why did Ayane Koizumi being one of Seven Freya Ladies yet never appeared on any social media or news. The both of them almost stumbled upon someone, the person turned around and it turns out he was Ryan. Gin's eyes widened, Ryan's eyes squinted and Ayane looked back and forth between them in confusion.

"Where have you been? Wait, is she your date?" Ryan asked curiously.

"Long story. She's a childhood friend of mine and-" Gin was cut off.

"Yes I am, my name is Ayane Koizumi. Pleased to meet you, Mister?" Ayane asked while smiling politely.

"Ah, I see…Ryan Taurus would be my name, pleased to meet you too" Ryan said while also smiling.

"…Oh my, so you're The Saint Gunslinger. It seems the rumors were right" Ayane smiled meaningfully.

Maybe it's the atmosphere or the dire implication of her smile that made Ryan started sweating because that means the rumors had spread around like a wildfire…Gin looked awkwardly to the side, trying to hide his pained and dreadful expression painted on his face. Ryan noticed this and he will confront him, he just need to send Ayane away for a bit…

"I need to speak with Gin for a bit, if you don't mind, it would seems your mother has arrived over that table. You may want to wait for a bit over there" Ryan suggested to Ayane.

"Fine by me. See you later, Gin" Ayane finally let go of him.

"Yeah…" Gin replied while smiling.

…Ryan and Gin stared at each other for a while and in span of few seconds, a lot of message was communicated between the two of them. Ryan couldn't believe the fact that Gin hid this fact from him, it's not that he's not happy with the fact Gin do have someone he liked, it's the fact that Gin kept quiet about this critical piece of information.

He had thought about asking Gin's help if he had to act behind Schicksal's back, but now he's adamant about not involving him in any plan he have to search for info behind their backs. Ryan did consider him a best friend, but his connection could jeopardize his hard work and that's something Ryan couldn't afford to sacrifice no matter what.

"…Gin, what the actual fuck? Childhood friend? One of the Seven Freya Ladies? Her mother being the head of Schicksal Far Eastern Division? You never mentioned-" Ryan started his barrage of questions.

"Hah…Ryan, this is fucking complicated and would take a while to explain! Can we do this later?" Gin said as he massaged his left temple.

"…I'll let this go for now. You owe me an explanation" Ryan said with furrowed eyebrows.

"Hai, hai. Just not tonight. Alright?" Gin said to Ryan.

"Fine…Putting that aside, did you brought it?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Yeah, here" Gin simply said.

Gin tossed him a small needleless injector filled with transparent liquid, this was pain killer drugs that could be bought anywhere on Soukai's drugstore. The injector was a perfect use for those who were afraid of needles, it act quickly, had low addictive side effect and the best off all, it's fucking cheap. Ryan had messaged Gin to get him one of these earlier in the afternoon since he won't have time to prepare his equipment thoroughly, the drugs would come in handy if Ryan ever injured in the near future.

"Nice. How much?" Ryan asked Gin.

"Don't sweat it for now" Gin said to Ryan.

Ryan nodded his head and both of them rejoined the other VIPs, it didn't took long before the emcee stood on the stage to announce the start of tonight's event. To commemorate that, The Head of Schicksal Far Eastern Division gave a short speech followed by the event that Ryan dreaded…The VIPs with dates were obligated to dance. Kallen took Ryan's right hand and guided him to the dance floor, she looked at him and giggled when she saw how tensed he was.

"Okay, don't be so tensed now Ryan" Kallen said while smiling.

"Can't help it alright? What if I step on your toes?" Ryan asked while frowning for a bit.

"Don't worry about it, just follow my lead" Kallen said to eased his worries.

Kallen guided Ryan on where to put his hands on, the steps he need to perform in span of few seconds before the orchestra band played a classical music. Kallen led Ryan gently, moving with the rhythm while mouthing her instructions. For a beginner, Ryan was doing quite well not to step on Kallen's feet and moving fluidly in coordination with her.

"There…one, two, three, four…one, two, three, four…there we go, keep with the rhythm and just glide our way on the dance floor…See? You've got the hang of it already" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Don't expect me to suddenly doing Salsa dance with you, alright?" Ryan asked while grinning.

"Fufufu, fear not, that won't happen unless someone requested it" Kallen said while smiling.

"That happened before?" Ryan asked with widened eyes in surprise.

"Yeah, last I've heard from Aunty Theresa" Kallen nodded her head.

"Whoa alright…Note to self, better practice some Salsa after this" Ryan said as he directed his focus back on his steps.

"I'm sure you'll be good at it in no time" Kallen said to Ryan.

Both of them continued to dance according to the rhythm, Ryan briefly looked around to glimpse at his surroundings. There's hundreds of eyes on them, Han and Bella didn't seemed to mind much, Gin and Ayane looked like they were used to this and Igor alongside Adriana danced while chatting…Was Ryan the only one who sucked at this?!

"…Hey, Ryan" Kallen suddenly called him.

"Yeah?" Ryan asked Kallen.

"I want to ask something" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Shoot" Ryan said while nodding his head.

"Are you free this weekend?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Why yes I think so, Saturday afternoon until Monday morning" Ryan explained to her about his schedule.

"Excellent. We plan to going to the pool, would you like to join us?" Kallen asked Ryan.

By we did she meant her alongside The Valkyrie Top Guns? Safe to bet they were the ones she planned to go with. A day at the pool with beautiful girls, what straight man would say no to this? Ryan will definitely said yes to this one.

"Really? Hmm, that's a very tempting offer" Ryan said while smiling.

"Okay, give me straight answer Ryan. Yes or no?" Kallen said while pouting a little.

"I thought my answer is obvious?" Ryan cocked his eyebrows.

"I'll take that as you going" Kallen said to Ryan.

"Fine by me. You just want to see me being shirtless huh? You know I could do that anytime you want" Ryan said then winked at her.

"Hahahaha, not exactly. Though that would be nice too" Kallen laughed softly while staring at Ryan.

The music slowed down as it ended, the crowd stopped dancing and clapped resounded inside the ballroom. Kallen smiled as she smiled widely at Ryan who replied by grinning, Ryan offered his right hand to Kallen who eagerly took it as they returned to the VIP seats.

"There, dance's over. That wasn't so hard, wasn't it?" Kallen asked Ryan.

"Yeah you're right…Thanks, Kallen. For teaching me" Ryan said gratefully.

"Anytime" Kallen said while smiling sweetly.

They were back on the seats alongside the others, the tables were already set with set of dishes for dinner…Huh, of course the VIPs would receive special treatment, the food were piping hot alongside cold high grade wine bottles inside a bucket of ice…all of this for free. Ryan's broke student side of his brain suggested that he should attend this kind of event as much as possible, the thought that he quickly dismissed.

"How do I perform?" Ryan asked Han who sat beside him.

"You're killing it at least" Han replied as he enjoyed the appetizer on the plate.

"Good to know" Ryan replied wryly.

Ryan looked to his left side to saw Maya, Gin and Ayane were busy talking about something with Maya occasionally nodding her head while Ayane looked quite serious listening on something that Gin told them about…After a while, Ryan nibbled on his appetizer and started looking at the other VIPs who sat in front of him.

The waist long brunette with emerald eyes in front of him was Riani Putri Utami, the sole heir of Keris Armaments Company. Her father was the CEO and naturally as the next in line to take over the company she's quite good in handling business, people said that she's quite a loner and didn't like to be around crowds…wonder why? Ryan thought that if he need a link to some big shot corporation, Riani might be his way in.

Beside her there's a girl with waist length light orange hair tied in thick ponytail with hazel colored eyes, she's Rena Fujiwara or better known as 'Elven Ranger'. Yeah, you guessed it, she's an athlete that had brought back several medals for Saint Freya Academy since her entry to the school. She's especially talented in basketball, her nickname was conceived due to how fast and nimble she was on the field…Every girl on regular division had said that she would make a very capable Valkyrie, but it seemed she clearly rejected the idea for some reason.

Katya Volkova, jet black medium straight hair with wide brown eyes was quite known for her affiliation with the science department. She could be categorized as a genius, she absorbed lesson quickly, she often experimented on the science lab and she liked to conduct field observation whenever she has free time. A bit eccentric among the other ladies, but nevertheless she knew the time and place when she had to act properly. She might be able to help if Ryan ever need something scientific analyzed…but can she be trusted?

The next one was Sera Cornelia, a girl with shoulder length dark pink hair and amethyst eyes that actually served as Claire's secretary. Surprise motherfucker? Yeah, at first Ryan thought she's Claire's attendant or something since she's always around her but he was wrong. Claire maybe the charming one but for diplomacy and administrative nonsense? Then Sera's the one you want on the job. She's capable doing almost anything which lead to some rumor about her actually being an AI with artificial robotic body…She's cute though, so Ryan didn't think much of it.

…After finishing his appetizer, Ryan looked toward the northern side balcony on the third floor where Kiana and Sakura were posted as Oversight…he wonder what were they doing now since the radio had been silent for the last few minutes.

.

"Sakura, is drinking on the job wrong?" Kiana suddenly asked.

"Depends on your profession, I think" Sakura said while shrugging.

"Hah…I need to drink something that could keep me warm" Kiana sighed then said.

"Unfortunately, we can't do that at the moment" Sakura said while smiling wryly.

Kiana huffed, she had no plan to be on standby outside the ballroom at night. It's quite cold and damn, she also wanted to enjoy the ball to the fullest. Right now she's on the third floor balcony, looking at the dark night sky. Kiana wore strapless blue dress with Sakura who wore a formal pink kimono, she stood not too far apart from Kiana. Both of them had mask with Kiana wore a smiling opera mask on her face while Sakura wore white fox mask on hers.

"This is Command. Perimeter check, everything holds?" Himeko asked on the radio.

"Oversight here, all clear" Kiana responded immediately.

"Viper here, all green" Mei responded on the radio.

"Ghost Team here, clear so far" Rahn responded on the radio.

"Understood. Keep the guard up people" Himeko said on the radio.

""""Roger"""" Kiana, Mei and Rahn responded.

"…Why we're the ones who got the cold place like this?" Kiana asked out loud.

"Well, it beats others position. At least we got chilly nights, beautiful sea of stars and bright crescent moon tonight" Sakura said while smiling for a bit.

Kiana huffed again, Sakura was being too optimistic tonight for some reason…Kiana looked behind to the ballroom direction, her cousin have it good with her staying in the ballroom, dancing, good food and chill wine she guessed…Kiana saw several shadows moved to her right peripheral vision, she glanced to the side and found several people walking. She would've ignored them, were it not for the fact each of them carrying something on their hands…

"Look alive, I saw something to the west" Kiana said to Sakura.

"We've spotted some movement near entrance B. Ghost Team, some of them headed to your direction. What's your status?" Sakura asked Ghost Team on the radio.

"They'll regret being born in three…two…one" Rahn said on the radio.

A group of armed men wearing balaclava, black clothing, Kevlar vest, ammo pouch and carrying AKM. Two of them opened the large double doors and the rest of them pointed their guns at the empty hallway, after making sure the hallway was cleared they entered through it. These armed men walked cautiously in the empty hallway, that emptiness didn't last long when something was thrown toward them.

That something was a cylindrical flashbang grenade, their eyes widened and can't reacted fast enough as the grenade exploded. The grenade produced bright flash and deafening sound, effectively blinding and deafening the group of armed men. Almost at the same time, six Vikings dressed in formal dresses appeared all over the hallway with side arms. Gunfire resounded on the hallway, bullets flying through and the terrorist retreated out of the hallway while firing their AKM rapidly.

The Vikings continued their push, firing their side arms then took the downed AKMs and their ammo from the dead terrorists to boost their firepower temporarily. Rahn and Agus stopped for a while to look at the dead terrorist, Rahn kneeled down to inspect the details. These terrorist didn't wore any kind of badge, but they're surely affiliated with Mountain Dragons.

"…That was easy" Agus commented.

"Kevlar vest, balaclava, ammo pouch and factory issue AKM. Yup, definition of terrorist?" Rahn asked while sneering.

"Not always, what about those who wear jacket and ties then sat on the government seats?" Agus asked while scoffing.

"Skip those political statement bollocks and help me with these arseholes will you?!" James shouted from near the entrance while firing his AKM.

"Oversight here! Confirmed twenty plus unidentified contact heading through the parking lot!" Kiana reported on the radio.

"Understood. Viper Team, they're yours" Himeko said on the radio.

Viper Team were consisted of Fuuka, Mei and Namira alongside several other Valkyries that were on standby around the parking lot Mei wore a pink dress with white gloves alongside a white swan themed mask while Fuuka wore strapless dark blue dress without mask. They're the rapid responder for any threat outside the building while Ghost Team handled the large scale attack on the inside, majority of them wield melee weapons which suited them greatly in close confinement of the parking lot to set up their ambush.

"Viper team, copy that…Oh, here they come" Mei said on the radio.

Around ten plus terrorist entered the parking lot, they were shocked to find Mei, Namira and Fuuka stood before them with their weapons on their hands. The terrorist immediately aimed their AKM at the three of them, Fuuka walked forward a bit while scowling in threatening manner.

"We'll give you one warning only, surrender now and you will be spared" Fuuka declared, which the terrorist took no heed.

"…They didn't seem to heed us, Fuuka-san" Mei said to Fuuka.

"Oh well it's their funeral" Namira said while shrugging.

Without wasting any more time, Namira threw her spear toward one of the terrorist which penetrated the Kevlar vest and sliced his heart. The terrorists opened fire, Namira, Fuuka and Mei charged directly ahead toward them despite the barrage of 7.62mm bullets. Mei swiftly closed in on them, stabbed one in the stomach and took the AKM on his hands. She used the rifle to gun down the two other to her right by emptying the entire magazine.

One terrorist was about to shoot Mei before Fuuka dived toward him with a glowing fist, the poor bastard's neck snapped and he was thrown toward the wall. Mei threw the rifle she carried to one of the terrorist, startling him and giving Mei an opening to performed diagonal slash at him. The terrorists behind him decided to make a run for it, before Namira's spear flew through one in the back, Fuuka took two by their collar and slammed them to the asphalt floor and Mei's katana went through the last one.

"Something's not right, these people seemed barely knew how to fight…" Namira commented.

"It seemed so…All done here, command" Mei reported to Himeko.

"Ghost Team here, threat eliminated" Rahn said on the radio.

"Good work everyone. Stand by for your next order" Himeko responded on the radio.

"Mei…you could wield a rifle" Fuuka noted while smiling.

"Why yes of course, I had Kiana to teach me how to use one…It did come in handy, but I prefer my katana nevertheless" Mei said while grinning.

Her experience during Operation Dawnbreaker were the one behind her motivation to learn how to use firearms, during the base Honkai raid it's quite problematic to fought those flyers type only with a katana. She went to grabbed one of the downed Viking's M16B-PAR to help protected the shelter and you guessed it, despite being a Valkyrie she's not used to the rifle's recoil, aiming down the sight and eventually she wasted a magazine without dealing much damage.

When she came to Kiana to request that, Kiana was more than happy to teach her how to use variety of firearms. Mei thought that the principle were quite basic, almost the same for swordsmanship. Good posture, finger on the trigger, eyes down the sight and be ready for the weapon's recoil when fired. She tested fired Kiana's USP to get a feel and eventually Kiana had Mei tried the M20SAR that The Vikings used on their first match…

Mei found out that firing firearms accurately while moving was a hard task to accomplish, The Vikings did it by moving around frantically with their jet thrusters but managed to keep their aim steady, the ones who stood above the dropship also managed to do that even with the dropship moving around, Ryan himself emptied eight rounds of M1911H into several of them with pin point accuracy and incredible speed…all of that required intensive training, experience and nimble fingers. She discovered that the world of firearms were quite vast to explore.

"Ghost here, we got a live one over here. Permission to 'talk' with them?" Rahn suddenly said on the radio.

"Granted. Find out what they know" Himeko said on the radio.

"With pleasure. Get that guy over here!" Rahn said to the others.

One of the terrorist was alive although wounded, he leaned on the nearby wall while holding his bleeding stomach and trying to escape. James caught him by the collar however and dragged him back toward The Viking's position on the building entrance, the terrorist flailed around trying to escape but James iron grip didn't even loosened even when being repeatedly hit by him. James threw the guy to the ground, he then put his feet on the chest area.

"No, please! ARGH!" The guy grunted in pain.

"How bad?" James asked Agus who checked the terrorist condition.

"Nah, the bullet missed his organ it's just a flesh wound…He'll live" Agus said to James.

"But you won't live long if you don't answer our question…Understood?" James asked the terrorist.

James really meant what he said, none of The Vikings shown problems when they had to take someone's life. They have been trained for it, they were prepared to do it. That's why, a single terrorist like him who could no longer fight was a child's play compared to the soldiers they faced on their first mission. The terrorist saw that James, Rahn and Agus stared at him with cold hard stare, he got no choice but to nodded his head.

"Good. Aulen Team, we'll need your help with this" Rahn said on the radio.

"Da, Aulen Team is standing by" Bronya responded on the radio.

Aulen Team were Task Force Terra Intel analyst and technical support team, they're the one who will help when the task force encounter problems concerning technology and Intel. For that, they got the best and brightest among them stationed on this team. James wasn't the one who's good at interrogating someone, that would be Rahn. James nodded at Rahn who understood what he meant, Rahn kneeled beside the downed terrorist.

"Where are the rest of your friends?" Rahn casually asked.

"I-I-I don't know!" The terrorist immediately answered.

"…you want to die that badly?" Rahn said as he took out a Desert Eagle handgun.

"I swear! I'm just a regular guy! Recruited online! We…we were promised rewards if we manage to pull this off!" The terrorist said in panicked tone.

"Online recruitment?" Rahn cocked his eyebrows.

It's not a secret anymore that terrorist groups had also gone digital, they won't have to actually step their foot on the ground in their attempt to terrorize the populace. Why would they do that when they could make the populace itself to do the job for them? Online recruitment were one of the many ways, to think they could turned the people they supposed to protect into enemies were quite disturbing thought for them. James took out his phone, opened the note application and shown the screen to the terrorist.

"…Type the link here, now!" James simply said.

"A-Alright!" The terrorist answered while he started typing.

"Command, did you hear that?" Rahn asked Himeko on the radio.

"Yeah, Aulen Team?" Himeko asked them on the radio.

"Analyzing the link sent by 05, now" Bronya said on the radio.

"You're telling me, this attack was conducted by armed civilians? Is everyone just ordinary people!?" Rahn asked the terrorist.

"…Yes, I think so. We were told to meet in one spot, with the equipment they sent to us. Please man! I got nothing left! This is the only way for me to continue living!" The terrorist pleaded for mercy.

…That put Rahn, James and Agus into complete silence in thought. What were the odds that The Mountain Dragon used those that were desperate for a change on their life to do their bidding? Like this guy, he got nothing left so he's desperate enough to commit terrorist act just to gain what were promised by them…Money? Prestige? Power? They didn't know, but what they clearly know was the fact that this was a big problem.

"…Command, we got a problem" Rahn said to Himeko on the radio.

"So I've heard. Aulen Team, what's the result?" Himeko asked on the radio.

"09 here, I'll explain. This website was created around ten days ago, they're some sort of Mountain Dragon recruitment page. So far, there's around eight thousand registered follower. In order to access this, someone would need the capability to surf the deep web. That means, not everyone would took risk like this…only devoted followers, I think" Michael answered on the radio.

"I see. Could you access their network through the website?" Himeko asked Michael on the radio.

"Bronya is trying now but there's no guarantee it will succeed, they're quite good in covering their tracks" Michael responded on the radio.

"Don't worry, just try your best" Himeko said on the radio.

"Ghost Squad to Guard Squad, we got a situation. Our perimeter team managed to hold off an attack, but I got a feeling this was just their vanguard. Be on the lookout, Mountain Dragon is confirmed trying to mess the party" Rahn said on the radio.

"Copy that" Ryan simply responded on the radio.

James was about to let go when he noticed an oddity, there's a large rectangular bulk on the Kevlar vest rear left shoulder that this terrorist wore. What was that? Racking his brains, James didn't have the slightest clue on what was the function of that thing.

"Hey you, what's this?" James asked the terrorist.

"Battery packs? Its lithium battery isn't it?" The terrorist answered.

"This big? Normal battery for today's gadget supposed to be smaller than…Shite, 04! Help me remove this case!" James suddenly said.

"Wha? What's going on?" Agus was confused.

"Something's not right, come on!" James said to Agus.

Now, they're on 21st Century with technology being so advanced they have hologram projector, portable energy based weapons, floating war ships with anti-gravity engine, advanced AI, Quantum Computer, nearly limitless Honkai Energy Generator and somehow these guys still used a lithium battery that big? Hell, even their smartphone internal battery nowadays used ion battery as small as adult human pinky finger and that enabled the phone to live for two days without charging!

"You got any screwdriver?" James asked as he inspected the stuff.

"…I've come here dressed to party not to repair shit!" Agus said to James in annoyed tone.

"Err, right" James said while cringing.

James wrestled the stuff off from the vest, he then inspected the rectangular item and found a switch hidden on one of its side. Wordlessly, he switched it and the rectangular box was opened. Inside it they found strange looking metallic colored item, it shaped like the mouse you use to operate a computer.

"Huh. Well look at that, it's simple to open. What's this?" James said as he tossed it to Rahn.

"Dunno, some kind of transmitter? It looked like a mouse" Rahn said as he inspected the item closely.

The mouse suddenly transformed, it produced six foldable mechanical limbs around its side. That's not all because Rahn was confused yet intrigued on the item, that intrigue was short lived however as the item became alive and jumped straight at Rahn's face. Not only that, the mechanical limbs dug into the skin of his head that give intense pain alongside causing Rahn to lose his shit.

"GAH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF OF ME!" Rahn shouted as he flailed around.

"Hold still you twat! We can't get a grip on it! 04, tackle his feet!" James said to Agus.

"GAHHH!" Rahn fell as Agus tackled him and held him still.

Several other Vikings helped restraining the freed terrorist, while others either helped Agus and James or keeping watch for any bystanders. James tried to wrestle the damn thing away from Rahn's face, but the grip on his face was just too tight. He briefly considered getting a crowbar to unjammed the thing but then Rahn would have to spent a lot of money for cosmetic surgery…James shrugged as he nodded to Agus who nodded back, both of them then pulled at the thing as hard as they could which earned even louder scream from Rahn.

"Just a bit more! Hold on mate!" James said to Rahn.

"Guh! This thing would be massive hit for those who have rape fetish, eh!?" Agus commented as he pulled.

"Not helping in the slightest, 04!" James retorted.

After few seconds of intense pulling, they finally managed to get it off Rahn's face which was bloodied as the thing's mechanical limbs tore some of his face's skin which it gripped on. James gripped tightly on the thing, preventing it from running or latching into someone else's face while the limbs moving around frantically, Agus took a fire extinguisher from the hallway. He returned to James who let the thing go as soon as Agus swung down the fire extinguisher.

BANK!

The mechanical creature was now just a pile of almost flat metal, Rahn was the one who had to deal with the aftershock of being the victim of consent-less face sucking was currently heaving hard in both shock and pain. James ruffled his own hair while Agus lifted the fire extinguisher to check whether that thing died or not. It died for sure, but for additional precaution Agus stomped on it.

"Hah…hah…hah…THE FUCK WAS THAT THING?!" Rahn asked while shouting.

"…Some kind of drone? But what's its function?" James asked out loud as he inspected the wreck.

"It tries to latch on 06's face, I think our VIPs is in danger…Furthermore, assuming every one of them carried one of these? We're fucked" Agus said to James.

"I'll check the others! You report to command!" James said to Agus.

"Command, this is 04! A drone that emerged from the enemy's equipment tried to do something to 06, we've killed it but there maybe more. Assuming every enemy we've put down carry one of these, there might be around two dozens of these little drones spread around this building! Our VIPs is in danger!" Agus reported on the radio.

"Command understood. Get one sample to Aulen Team immediately, out!" Himeko said on the radio.

"Bugger…Mate, look at this" James called Agus.

A Viking arrived with a first aid kit from the hotel's lobby, he quickly took care of Han's wound while Agus head over to James position. The corpse of the dead terrorist all had the box that contained whatever that thing opened and the content ran off somewhere, it got worse when The Vikings didn't exactly know where it went until they saw the ventilation system on the building's wall…That's when they knew this entire operation was endangered.

"All gone…oh shit, the vents!" Agus said to James.

"Of course it's always the vents! Goddamnit, all teams…code red, I repeat! Code red!" James said on the radio.

.

"Code red? Fuck…Guard Squad on it" Ryan said on the radio.

Ryan stared at everyone on the table before he cleared his throat, he then rose up from his seat followed by the other members of the squad. If what they heard about the drones were true, then this ballroom would be their killing field. They could move around the crowds unnoticed and then suddenly latched on the VIPs face too…What if they were packed with explosives? Those drones could certainly killed them easily once they latched on their faces!

"Is something wrong?" Bella asked Ryan.

"Yes, very. Ladies, listen well…the security of this building is compromised, all of you are in danger" Ryan said in composed tone.

"Danger? From what?" Sera asked Ryan.

"Group of terrorist. We'll explain the rest in a safe place, please follow us for now" Ryan said with serious face.

"Oh my god" Bella put a hand to cover her gaping mouth.

"They're trying to kill us? Who?" Ayane asked out loud.

"Please, get us out of here, Ryan!" Clair said to Ryan.

"We will, your safety is our primary mission. Let's go" Ryan said while leading the group.

The VIPs quickly left their table and moved toward the eastern entrance, they had to move fast while unnoticeable but unfortunately that won't be the case. They're well-known figures, leaving together at the same time like this will undoubtedly attracted too many attention on them. Ryan walked in front of them with Kallen, clearing the path from anyone who might got in their way.

"…They have made their move. It's sooner than I expected" Maya said in low tone.

"Okaa-sama, you knew about this?" Ayane asked Maya with wide eyes.

"Yes, of course I knew about this. I'm also the one who recommended The Vikings as our guards, Ayane" Maya said to Ayane with serious face.

Ayane looked at Maya before she stared at Gin who was in front of her, he occasionally turned his head around to check for any signs of threat…Ayane knew Gin was quite good in activity that involved fighting, but she still worried that something may happened to him. He did survived for two years on desolated Southern Japan alongside Ryan Taurus though, he won't go down so easily if the assassin suddenly attacked them.

"Right this way ladies, stay close…Guard Two, stay in the middle with the others. Keep your eyes open for those things" Ryan said to Kallen.

"On it" Kallen nodded her head.

"Igor, these terrorist group…" Adriana whispered to Igor who walked beside her.

"…Da, Gornyy Drakon…your old enemy" Igor said while frowning.

"…My god, they're back" Adriana said in low tone.

Back when Adriana still a Valkyrie, she tagged alongside a UNAF task force to hunt The Mountain Dragon Terrorist Group on Eastern Europe. Some hard bastards to take down, Adriana spent a year and three months in the fight against them. They're the sole reason why Adriana managed to meet her husband though, so she didn't really hate them for it...The group arrived in front of a double doors, Ryan knocked on the door twice.

"Command this is Guard Squad, we've arrived" Ryan said on the radio.

"Good, get in!" Himeko said on the radio.

The door was opened and two Valkyries with USP.45 secured the hallway as the VIPs went inside the room, they shut the door and locked it up as soon as they're all inside. The ladies alongside Maya sat on the sofa set near the corner of the room, Ryan, Kallen, Gin, Han and Igor went toward Himeko who sat on a sofa with tactical data pad on her hands.

After giving brief report on the situation, Himeko nodded her head, got up and head toward the VIPs to explain the current situation to them with Victoria's help, she said that the principal didn't want to ruin the night's atmosphere so they intend to keep the whole operation under the radar. But that obviously didn't work as there's some unexpected parts that resulted in them having to change plans, that's why now the VIPs were inside this designated 'safe room'…

"01, have The Vikings including Ghost Team to set up perimeter around this room" Himeko said to Ryan.

"On it ma'am. Boys, you heard the lady, gather on me" Ryan said out loud.

The Vikings who were in the room immediately gathered around Ryan who took careful look on each one of them, they did well for only having light Kevlar vest protection instead full set of armor, looks like Victoria's plan to make them get used to fight without Sleipnir armor did well…Ryan however stopped at Rahn, he almost got every part of his face bandaged because of his wound.

"Sheesh Rahn, look at your face" Ryan said while sneering.

"I should've said the same to you sooner, both of us now have something to tell when we're picking up chicks at least" Rahn fired back while scowling.

"Hmph, right. Anyway, fourteen of us, two on Aulen Team. Twelve men, four corners, get on it" Ryan simply ordered.

And that's how they got four team under five seconds, everyone was formed based on squads that often divided into if The Vikings ever needed spread out. The composition for each squad weren't always the same, but the one they're on right now were the most frequent combination they used. Ryan confirmed everyone got their teams, he then nodded his head.

"We're set? Alright. I'll lead team one, James will lead team two, Igor with team three and Rahn with team four" Ryan said to The Vikings.

"All units, the boys have joined together in Viking Team One to Team Four" Himeko gave a status update on the radio.

"…Command, this is Officer Nathan, one of our police security teams isn't responding. They're on the rooftop garden, could you sent one of your teams to check them out?" Someone said on the radio.

"Affirmative, we'll get on it…Team Four, you're up. Get over there and find out what happen" Himeko ordered.

Task Force Terra alone would be ineffective in handling tonight's guard duty so that's why they got the local police department to help securing the event, the police guards were more numerous but they weren't equipped with equipment saved for their basic sidearm, handcuffs and radios. Why? Well, their high command 'didn't want to send the wrong message'…Kind of a dumb decision, but what can they as 'civilian' possibly do about it?

"Yes ma'am, we're on it…twenty credits says those police were dead" Rahn said to Agus.

"I choose radio malfunction" Agus said to Rahn.

"You're on" Rahn said while grinning.

"…I can't believe you guys bet on this" A random Viking said behind them.

"Hey 06! Try not to get your face uglier than it already is!" Ryan commented as Rahn about to leave the room.

"Up yours 01!" Rahn said as he whipped a middle finger straight at Ryan.

Viking Team Four made their way to the rooftop of the building, short elevator ride solved the problem because they really wanted to save their stamina and breath for a potential fight that may wait for them on the rooftop. The team made it to the rooftop with no problem, the real problem started there as they discovered six lifeless body of police officers. Someone indeed passed through this area and they didn't hesitate to kill police? Who else other than the terrorist group they currently fight?

"See? You owe me twenty credits" Rahn simply said.

"Yeah, yeah. So, who did this? Must been a hell of skilled guys to take out six police officer like this without a trace" Agus commented.

Someone casually walked toward The Vikings who in turn analyzed that someone…Let's see, black coat with hood, ballistic mask, bandolier full of gear alongside a short sword with bloodied blade. Every Viking in the rooftop immediately assumed that this guy were the one responsible for the murder of six cops, but he must be a fucking dumbass to just shown himself in front of them instead of ambushing The Vikings. Were they being underestimated by that guy? For sure!

"Command, we found a suspicious individual" Rahn reported on the radio.

"…I'm guessing he's not here to surrender?" One of The Viking asked out loud.

"No and that's why we're enforcing zero fucks policy tonight, kill him!" Rahn said out loud.

The Four Vikings took out and immediately fired their Desert Eagle, each one loaded with seven .50 caliber rounds that had enough kinetic strength to pierce normal Kevlar vest or popped someone's organ with direct hit. That means twenty eight rounds were pumped straight toward the assassin by The Vikings in gangsta execution style, the assassin stumbled back in response before he regained his posture…like he was unscathed.

"H-How's that possible!? Four barrage of Desert Eagle with .50 caliber bullets did nothing to that prick!?" One of The Viking said.

"Nanomachines, son! Bullets won't work on me!" The person said while shrugging.

"…I got a feeling that it wasn't the case and he just want to said that to our face" Agus said with half opened eyes.

"Bullets didn't work for you? Fine, let's get intimate then!" Rahn declared.

Four Vikings spread out and approached the assassin in close quarter combat, technically speaking they're being stupid because none of them seemingly carried any melee weapons to counter that sword. But this stupid plan worked well, all because Rahn and Agus had something up their sleeve. This weren't supposed to be a fair fight so Agus who got in close first had to dodged a sword stab while getting between the guy's legs.

Taking the legs with him, Agus passed through under his feet while pulling the legs towards him. The assassin fell down but not before he able to tackle Rahn's feet, he fell toward the assassin who threw a straight jab at his face from the floor. Rahn stumbled back, the two other Vikings closed in on the assassin but had to halt themselves when the assassin recovered and pointed his sword towards them.

But he's full of opening because Agus once again came back and grabbed the assassin from behind. Making sure he got firm grip on him, Agus then lifted the assassin up before throwing him to his back in supplex style hold. The action was so fast that the assassin couldn't react fast enough, the assassin's rear neck made contact with the hard pavement.

CRACK!

There's sound of something dislocated or outright broken coming from the assassin's neck, the guy laid motionless while groaning in pain on the floor. Rahn took the fallen blade, get on top of the assassin by jumping and drove the blade straight through his chest. The assassin jerked upward and screamed in pain when the blade went through him, Rahn who had enough for tonight then twisted the blade. The result was one dead assassin with gaping wound on his chest, killed by his own blade when his heart split into two.

"Command, assassin eliminated!" Rahn said on the radio.

"Outstanding work 06" Himeko said on the radio.

"Huh…you're not as tough as I thought you would, all that meme talk and you got your ass handed like it was nothing. I swear Senator Armstrong was a lot more trouble than you" Agus commented at the dead assassin.

"Fuck sake…I need a break" Rahn said as he dropped to the floor.

Rahn fell backwards while seated, the blade that he used to kill the assassin was thrown away few meters from him. He controlled his breathing alongside realizing something, something warm was hitting his mouth and jaw. He checked what it was by wiping it with his hand, it's a fresh blood. Looks like that punch to the face hit his nose quite hard, Rahn sighed as he took out a handkerchief and stuffed his nose with it to soaked the blood.

"What's the matter with you? You're more than good in CQC, so why tonight you're so easily beaten down?" Agus asked with cocked eyebrows.

"…Off to a not so great start, man. My face suffer more damage compared to all these years I'm fighting, the pain also distracted me" Rahn said while still seated.

"…Well at least you're alive" Agus commented to Rahn while smiling.

"Dude, check this out" One of The Viking said.

Agus left Rahn to calm down for a bit to approach The Viking who kneeled down beside the dead assassin, he took something from his left hand and threw it toward Agus who caught it effortlessly. Agus inspected the thing he's carrying, it's some sort of wrist utility tool with screen…Who was he kidding, this was a wrist computer.

"Aulen Team, got a wrist computer or some kind in here, maybe you'll get something useful out of it?" Agus said on the radio.

"Excellent work 04, try to access it and go over to the radio part" Michael responded on the radio.

"Um, one problem. I don't know how to operate this" Agus said as he stared at the computer.

"What? It should be easy, what model is it?" Michael asked on the radio.

"Hey 09! I'm not some tech savvy like you! How about you get over here and do this? Because I don't get how to operate this piece of-" Agus ranted while tapping the computer randomly.

"Oh look, you're in" The Viking behind Agus said.

"…Sheesh…Alright. What are we looking for?" Agus asked on the radio.

"Try to run a search feature on it, an icon with magnifying glass on the top left corner of the screen" Michael said on the radio.

"Okay. So, should I search for 'briefing' file?" Agus asked on the radio.

"Yeah, try it" Michael said on the radio.

"Found one! Um…Alright, these guy over here that we just killed is a mercenary? He had two set of targets, Maya Koizumi and The Seven Freya Ladies" Agus explained the file he found on the screen.

"Wow…so the armed guys and the drones before is not the last of our concerns" Ryan commented over the radio.

"Anything else over there, 04?" Michael asked on the radio.

"Yeah. Two target of opportunity…Samuel Gideon and Laila Watterson, not sure who these two are but I think we should get them" Agus said as he read the file.

"Any list of associates?" Michael further asked on the radio.

"Which button should I press?" Agus asked back on the radio.

"Can you describe the computer for me?" Michael asked on the radio.

"A bit bulky, LCD screen, colored black with analogue buttons on the right side" Agus described the computer that he held.

"I'm guessing that's PTC-200 model wrist computer, they provided great advantage because if you wore these then you could send tactical data to your nearby teammate's instantaneously. Head over to the contact list tab, there should be a tab to see who others that connected to that device" Michael explained on the radio.

"This is Command, head back here Team Four. We'll let Bronya analyzed the device" Himeko interjected on the radio.

"Understood…Hmm? There's three more!" Agus said on the radio.

"Three more assassins, great!" Han said on the radio.

"Their location!? Press the local map overlay!" Michael asked on the radio.

"…Done! One to the northern side, three hundred meters from this building! One inside our building and one other is pretty close to the parking lot!" Agus explained on the radio.

"North side? Oversight, you're in the view of one of the assassins, don't take any chances and find cover. Leave the balcony, but make it as naturally as possible!" Himeko said on the radio.

Back to Kiana and Sakura, both of them temporarily frozen when they heard that there's a crosshair over their heads. Kiana subtly scanned the horizon for any signs of the assassin, but of course it's being at night alongside the good concealment they used made it almost impossible for her to find them in such short notice. Even with her AR Lens, she still couldn't find them…she hoped they didn't carry sniper rifle.

But being stationed three hundred meters away from the building they targeted, alongside not making a move yet was a trademark for a recon or a sniper! They must've carried something with long range capabilities such as Designated Marksman Rifle or even the sniper rifle itself! Sakura who also scanned for any sign of the assassin had the same result as Kiana, both of them decided that retreating would be the best option…handgun and swords would obviously lose against a rifle in matter of range.

"…Roger that, we're moving...If they carry sniper rifle, we're goners…Sakura, let's move" Kiana said to Sakura.

"Yeah, this way" Sakura said to Kiana.

Sakura led Kiana out from the balcony, both of them tried to make it as naturally as possible…But goddamn, it was hard to act when your life could be taken out any moment! Both of them made it safely, they got out from the large balcony and started heading down to the ballroom. Kiana and Sakura sighed in relief, they won't be losing their head anytime soon.

"We're out of view" Kiana said on the radio.

"Good. Viper Team, one of the assassin is pretty close to you. Find them and eliminate them" Himeko said on the radio.

"No need to do that, we've got the person in sight" Fuuka said on the radio.

On the parking lot Mei, Fuuka and Namira were faced with a woman who wore skimpy black coat with hoodie and ballistic mask, she dressed the same way as the previous assassin killed by Team Four. The woman looked at the dead terrorist behind the three Valkyries and she clicked her tongue, dissatisfied with the situation she's on.

"…Tch, incompetent fools. If they succeeded I won't have to come down here personally" The woman said in annoyed tone.

"Too bad about it, but these guys are civilians, what do you expect?" Namira said to the woman.

"Furthermore, manipulating these people's desperation for your own twisted gains? You make me sick" Mei said to the woman.

"Interesting, are you going to gang on me? Is that an honorable way to fight? Samurai?" The woman said to Mei.

"I'm no samurai so screw that. You will surrender or you'll die, your choice. Assassin!" Mei said as she drawn her Katana.

The assassin answered by taking out a Bo-staff from underneath her coat, she gave it few spin before she set her stance. The Valkyries realized one thing, fighting against them as a normal human in melee fight was basically a suicide but this woman confidently going to take the three of them directly? Reckless beyond belief, but no matter what their mission was clear. Namira charged first with her spear followed by Fuuka and Mei.

Instead of throwing it, Namira opted to engage her in melee fight. She clashed with the assassin, attacking her multiple times but all of her attacks were blocked. Namira clicked her tongue as she side stepped to allow Fuuka and Mei charged at the assassin, but she counter attacked immediately by charging ahead while swinging her staff that forced Fuuka to blocked the attack by crossing her armored arms. Fuuka successfully defended herself, but she was sent few meters to the rear.

Mei dodged both Fuuka and the staff strike, she get a clear opportunity to stab the assassin in the gut. The assassin noticed this however as she side stepped to the left, causing Mei to miss her attack. But Mei was not done yet because she immediately corrected her footing and dashed one more time toward the assassin, this time the assassin didn't run but chose to blocked Mei's katana stab directly. Mei forced the assassin to focus on her while Namira threw her spear at the assassin.

The assassin dodged the spear by pushing against Mei, she then slide Mei's feet that made her lost her footing and fell down. Before she's able to strike the downed Mei, Fuuka came between them and grabbed the staff. She lifted the staff up alongside the assassin who was surprised that Fuuka could lift her and slammed her to the asphalt ground, Mei recovered herself and Namira grabbed her spear who was stuck on a car. Fuuka also forced to retreat when the assassin recovered from the blow and sent barrage of strike against her, she's quite a pain to deal with.

"She's quite good, Namira-san!" Mei said to Namira.

"Yeah, but she has one fatal flaw. I'm sure you've noticed it, Mei, Fuuka" Namira said to them both.

"I do. Let's end this" Mei said out loud.

"I'll go first" Fuuka said as she charged again.

That fatal flaw was simple, the assassin didn't really have the best spatial awareness as she tended to focus on one opponent. The three of them going to end this together, Fuuka wasted zero seconds closing in on the assassin, she expectedly used her staff to stopped Fuuka and she wasn't surprised when Fuuka caught her staff. Sensing she might get lifted again, the assassin lifted Fuuka's first by swinging the staff to right side with all the strength she had.

Fuuka was indeed lifted and thrown away but that gave Mei and Namira an opening, Namira tried to strike first by spear thrust which the assassin dodged by side stepping to the left. Mei was next by swinging her katana rapidly in chain of strikes, the assassin again deflected the blows but then she realized her mistake…All of that, just to get the assassin in the kill zone. Mei was holding back, she then unleashed her full powered strike against the staff the assassin used and it was split into two.

The assassin was shocked to say the least, that staff was made of steel so that Katana supposed be dented or something! Fuuka who was thrown to the side earlier kicked a parked car toward the assassin who dodged it by jumping, that's her second mistake. It's because she got nothing to maneuver herself in the air, she's sitting ducks when she jumped and she didn't noticed the most dangerous adversaries when she lost the sight of her.

She landed but split seconds later, she was nailed to the wall. The assassin was shocked, that's until she realized what actually happened. Namira was calculating the place she would land based on her trajectory, as soon as the assassin's feet landed Namira threw her spear at velocity that made Achilles yelled 'damn girl!' in awe. The spear pierced the assassin from the back, carrying her with it and nailed itself and her body to the wall.

"GUHA!" The assassin threw up blood.

"…We've warned you, this is simply the consequences" Namira said while scowling.

"…I failed to murder those…traitors" The assassin said while gasping for air.

…The assassin's head slowly fell forward and hit the wall, her eyes remained open, her mouth still spewing fresh blood, the spear front part was painted red…The assassin finally stopped breathing as her soul left her body. She died when her spine and heart was pierced by the one hundred seventy centimeter long spear, Namira sighed as she put her hand's forward. The spear floated on its own back toward Namira's hand, the lifeless assassin's body fell to the ground…She's glad it's a quick death that she gave to that woman, she didn't torture her needlessly.

"Your throw was magnificent, Namira-san!" Mei commented to Namira.

"Well I'm your senpai after all! Got to show my kouhai on what I can do!" Namira said while smiling.

"How about a spar sometimes, Namira-san? I'm quite interested in dueling you" Fuuka asked while smiling.

"Maybe after all of this are over, we could talk about that Fuuka…Anyway, what is she talking about before she died? Something about traitors?" Namira asked out loud.

"I don't know. But I'm glad our part didn't took long…Command, Viper team here, assassin eliminated" Mei reported on the radio.

"Excellent news! Two left. 01, I want you to head down and secure Laila Watterson. Oversight, you got new orders. Find Samuel Gideon and secure him. Both of their pictures have been sent to you, good luck" Himeko said on the radio.

.

"""Roger""" Ryan, Kiana and Sakura said on the radio.

"Several Valkyries and Vikings also already headed down to the ballroom, they'll help you narrow the search" Himeko informed on the radio.

Ryan, Kiana and Sakura started moving toward the ballroom, Ryan coming from the safe room while Kiana and Sakura head down from the balcony. The three of them checked their phone when they got incoming message that detailed the appearance of the people they supposed to contact…Ryan was amazed and a bit uncomfortable how accurate Schicksal database was with information. They basically just heard the name few minutes ago for these potential victims, yet Schicksal already managed to get their photos as well as their basic biography…

Kiana and Sakura walked while scanning the whole room with a glass of wine on their hands, it warmed them up and also made them blended in with the surroundings. It would be easier to just split up but with one assassin still on the loose and the fact they're INSIDE the building, they would need to play safe…They've been on this ballroom for almost ten minutes, circling it even and still no sign of their intended target. Who they found was Ryan target instead, drinking wine while leaning on the wall.

"No sign of Samuel Gideon so far. But we find Laila Watterson, she's on the south side near the drink fountain. Go get her, 01" Sakura said on the radio.

"And what am I supposed to do? Just blatantly ask her to come with me?" Ryan asked as he made his way toward her.

"Are you that dense? Talk! Seduce! Get laid! Three basic steps on how to handle women as Ryan Bond! That's what you need to do! Just get her out of here!" Han interjected on the radio.

…The whole radio network fell into silence at the nonsense Han just spouted, as if Ryan need a reminder on how there's a rumor about him going on rampage on the girls dormitory! Surely his charm, aura and reputation were given the single massive middle finger by fate in his eighteen years of life due to that incident…That method won't work too, from now on Ryan need to learn when to take Han seriously and not always went along with whatever his tactical adviser might said…

"…You never cease to amaze me 03" Ryan said sarcastically.

"Thank you! Now, if only-" Han said on the radio.

"Can it you two and do your job 01!" Himeko interjected with annoyed tone.

"Alright, I'll do it!" Ryan said on the radio.

Ryan steeled his nerve and prepared to approach Laila Watterson, he thought on how should he approach this situation…he could be blunt, semi-blunt or outright only giving hints. Any situation would work but what would be best in how to subtly ask her to cooperate with him? Let's try semi-subtle, he'll say that she's in danger and need to follow him just not with 'in your face' kind of speaking.

Laila Watterson was an average looking woman with black hair tied into a neat bun, brown eyes, dressed in frilly green dress and she had an opera mask which was put to her left side of the face because she's currently drinking. Ryan kept his mask on, at least half of his face would be concealed in case the assassin monitored him at this moment.

"…Excuse me, miss?" Ryan said to Laila.

"Yeah, can I help you?" Laila asked Ryan.

"I was wondering, do you know Laila Watterson?" Ryan asked her in casual manner.

Ryan could noticed the slight twitch on Laila's eyes, of course she would be surprised but chit chatting before getting to the main point would be impractical in this situation…Hai will definitely do just that. Laila took a sip from her glass, she then looked at Ryan seriously while Ryan looked at the surrounding area to try identify anyone who looked towards them…so far none, that's good.

"…Who's that?" Laila asked Ryan.

"You know, just someone that's in danger. Several people didn't really like her, so they want to send her to the afterlife early. I'm here to make sure that didn't happen, I'd like to request her cooperation. These mercenaries didn't want to play smooth" Ryan said while smiling.

Laila's eyes widened and she subtly looked around her to see anyone suspicious, she looked like she's thinking hard on her options. She could escaped by herself or rely on some stranger here who offered his help to escort her. But he could be the assassin himself! So what would she choose? Laila folded her arms, she have to bet her life for this…She decided to go along for now, but any sign of ambush then she'll end him first.

"…Very well then, I think Laila would appreciate the help" Laila said to Ryan.

"Wonderful. If you be so kind to come with me? We'll have to get her to safety" Ryan said as he started walking.

"Lead the way" Laila said while nodding her head.

"…That's easier than I thought" Ryan muttered to himself.

Ryan swiftly led her to the designated safe room, along the way they passed someone who just came out of the male bathroom. He wore tux, he didn't carry mask with him and Ryan accidentally bumped into him, Ryan quickly get out of the way while smiling apologetically.

"Oh sorry" Ryan said while smiling.

"Don't be, thank you" The man said to Ryan.

Ryan cocked his eyebrows in confusion, the man who he bumped then walked toward Laila and jammed something on her neck. Laila's eyes widened, Ryan was in shock with his eyes wide opened and mouth hanging. His trained, battle proven reflex kicked in and Ryan swiftly used his walking cane to smash the guy's face. He stumbled back, Ryan thrust his walking cane to the guy's stomach, made him bend downward before sending a spinning kick towards him that resulted him getting thrown to the wall.

"Fuck! 02! I need your help! Western ballroom entrance, near the toilet!" Ryan said on the radio.

"Which one!?" Gin quickly replied on the radio.

"First floor!" Ryan said on the radio.

"On my way!" Gin said on the radio.

…Ryan checked on the guy who was surely the third assassin, he tried to stand up but Ryan won't let him by throwing full powered right hook. The assassin fell down once again, Ryan grabbed the guy by the neck, lifted him up and slammed him to the concrete wall…The assassin looked so satisfied, either he's glad he accomplished his mission or he's a masochist!

"…I'll give you one chance to explain yourself if you want to live. Why did you do this?" Ryan asked menacingly.

"Money, of course" The assassin answered while grinning.

"Why these people? Who want them dead?" Ryan further asked.

"Heh…you'll be surprised to know, how many want them dead-"

The assassin got another punch landed on his right jaw that came from Ryan's right arm, he's getting used to the metallic arm raw power. Compared to his left hand, the punch he performed with his right hand could be considered lethal and he found this to be quite…useful. Now the assassin lost some of his teeth, Ryan who was not satisfied only hitting his left cheek then decided to backhand slapped him in the right cheek.

"Who!?" Ryan asked again.

"You know it won't be that easy, didn't you?" The assassin cheekily answered.

"…You could play it however you want, tough guy. Everyone will break in the end!" Ryan said to the assassin.

With that, Ryan hit his solar plexus and the assassin fell down unconscious to the floor. Not long after that, Gin arrived while panting and had a VAP handgun on his hand. He briefly surveyed the whole corridor, after noticing that only Ryan who still stood Gin approached him.

"01! What happened?" Gin asked Ryan.

"Laila was attacked, how is she?" Ryan asked Gin.

Gin kneeled down near Laila who already bleed out, she died with a shocked expression forever painted on her face. He shook his head sideways as Gin closed her eyes and took out that something which embedded on her neck, it was a black flip knife with golden engravings on the hilt. He also inspected the wound caused by the blade on her neck, then Gin made his statement.

"…He cut her major neck aorta…she's gone in seconds, 01" Gin said to Ryan.

"…Command, we lost Laila Watterson…they got her. I captured the assassin alive, where should I put him?" Ryan asked on the radio.

"…Not on this room for sure. Find a suitable place to do so, I'll go there personally" Himeko answered on the radio.

"There's a toilet nearby, let's make sure none of the civilians head to this place" Ryan suggested on the radio.

"Leave that to me" Himeko said on the radio.

Ryan grabbed the assassin while Gin lifted Laila lifeless body from the floor and entered the male bathroom, inside of it was even more horrifying than Ryan thought. There's another dead body here, a bald dark skinned male with hazel eyes wearing formal suit with glasses. Ryan kneeled down after dropping the assassin on the floor to inspected the corpse, he widened his eyes when he founded the corpse's identity…he was Samuel Gideon.

"…01, we're unable to find Samuel Gideon. Did you see him?" Kiana asked on the radio.

"Yeah…the assassin got to him first, I'm looking at his body" Ryan said on the radio.

"Oh kami, we failed" Sakura said in dejected tone on the radio.

"…Twice we got our objectives eliminated by them" Kiana also said with dejected tone on the radio.

"Our main objectives is still alive people, don't let this distraught you!" Himeko said on the radio to the three of them.

"""Yes ma'am""" Ryan, Kiana and Sakura responded.

"06 here, I'm in position and I hit the jackpot. Also, send 01 here will you? I got few profanities to declare towards him. I've handed the wrist computer for analyze" Rahn said on the radio.

"Roger that. You heard him 01, your presence is requested on the safe room" Himeko said on the radio.

"Yeah, will do in a bit…Hey 02, stay here until command arrives" Ryan said to Gin.

"You got it, anything else?" Gin asked Ryan.

"…If you could, analyze what killed Samuel Gideon" Ryan said to Gin.

Gin kneeled in front of Samuel, he took out his phone and turned on the flash on it to better inspect the corpse. He winced at the sight he saw, it was almost exactly the same as the wound they found on Laila. This wasn't a mere coincidence, it's a technique…

"I think it's the same type of wound. Deep cuts into neck aorta, that guy is a pro for sure" Gin said to Ryan.

"Tie him down, I don't want that fuck to suddenly woke up and kill us" Ryan said as he inspected the wound.

"Fair point" Gin simply said.

Gin got up and took out something from his pocket, it's a rope for rappelling down and he used it to tie the assassin's hand. It didn't took long and he found something underneath the wash basin, it was a last generation smartphone who probably still used lithium battery and quite thick in size…

"Wait, 01…there's a phone in here…The screen's cracked, but it belongs to Gideon. No password at least, there's a call five minutes ago…and it's recorded" Gin said to Ryan after analyzing the phone.

"I don't know if he's smart or careless. Either way, play it with max sound" Ryan said to Gin who immediately did just that.

"Hey Gideon! I've composed a little poem for you! Roses are red, violets are blue. Your friend is dead, next one is you! Hehehehehehehe! You think you could defect from us and expect everything is going to be fine? You and Laila knew better than return to Schicksal! Remember? Those fucks were the one responsible for ruining us! Mountain Dragon have sheltered us, nurture us and even made us better in all aspect! Schicksal doesn't care about our deeds that saved their asses in the past, we're just a loose end to them! We owe The Mountain Dragon our lives! And you both disappointed them greatly! That's why, I'll kill you both personally! Even if you're both my brother and sister! And if I fail, I'll make sure the other succeeded! Peklo chekaye na tebe!" The phone recording ended.

The voice on that phone was exactly the voice of the assassin that Ryan just beat down, Gin grimaced at the thought that these two target of opportunities also possessed a link to Mountain Dragon. He also heard about Schicksal taking care of them as loose ends? The hell, this become even more complicated than it already was. Ryan scowled as he looked at the dead bodies then to the assassin, he'll thought about this later as he subtly turned off the recorder on his vest pocket.

"…I don't like where this is going" Ryan said out loud.

"Neither do I" Himeko suddenly said.

Ryan and Gin looked at the entrance to find Himeko staring at them, she entered the toilet while carefully avoiding any blood pool on the floor. Himeko heard the about the phone call and honestly, she had her own opinion on the matter but now's not the time to talk about it. She got priority to deal with and that's to secure any threat to the VIPs, looks like Ryan got one down already.

"Command, what does this mean?" Gin asked Himeko.

"No idea, but secure that phone for evidence. 01, head back to the safe room now" Himeko said to Ryan.

Ryan only nodded his head and wordlessly walked toward the safe room, he frowned as he opened the door. He got in and saw almost everyone was in the safe room, almost everyone were inside? What, was the situation safe enough already to warrant for them to lessen their guard around the room? As far as he concerned, there's another assassin that they need to deal with alongside drones.

"Hey, almost everyone are here?" Ryan asked out loud.

"We got the almost all the threats under control. And get this, the last assassin? They're remote controlled sniper rifle" Michael said to Ryan.

"RC Sniper rifle? How did you know that?" Ryan asked back.

"Bronya analyzed and hacked the system on this wrist computer, Bronya managed to deactivate the rifle and hacked into their battle network. We quelled the threat from the human enemies, the last threat would be those little drones" Bronya's the one who answered Ryan's question.

Yeah, as far as Ryan concerned the situation wasn't as dire as to when the assassins were alive and free. Sure they still got the drones to worry about, but at the moment there's not much they could do about it other than to keep an eye for them…finding them in this building would truly like finding needle in a haystack.

"Can you find them?" Ryan asked Bronya.

"The drones were not linked to their battle net, we have to search for them using other means" Bronya said to Ryan.

"Hah…this really complicates it" Ryan said after sighing.

"Oh yeah, douchebag! Thanks for jinxing me last time!" Rahn suddenly said to Ryan.

And he said that as he smacked Ryan's right shoulder, Ryan looked at Rahn's face who alongside got his face bandaged he got his nose plugged with dark red stain on the plug. Ha, the one who faced Rahn managed to land a solid hit on him? Something was wrong with Rahn today, Ryan thought but can't be sure on what was wrong.

"…Oh yes, you do look uglier!" Ryan answered while sneering.

"I'm so tempted to display the prowess of my vulgar dictionary here, but I don't want to make the VIPs uncomfortable" Rahn said as he threw his thumb backwards to the VIPs.

"Thank god for that…Anyway, we got the drones with us? Have you find any feature it has?" Ryan asked Michael.

"The design is a bit simple. It possessed built in stun gun on it, a camera and a sensor which I still don't know the function located on underside of its body. Its six legs were quite powerful, we could see the example on Rahn's wounded face. As of right now, I got a theory" Michael said as he inspected the drone.

"Let's hear it" Ryan simply said.

"This thing is built specifically for data gathering and sabotage. The sensor seems to possess scanning capability, the stun gun possessed enough power and battery to produce small electrical pulse discharge. This thing could latch on a power grid, transformer or generator and boom there goes the power!" Michael explained as he inspected the drone.

But just as he said that, the whole room turned pitch black as they heard faint sound of explosion. Ryan eyes went half closed, Michael sat as he was inspecting the drones with twitching eyebrows…The timing was so perfect, Ryan used the AR lens function to enable the night vision. His vision lighted up in green hue but it's not that bright with the enclosed room without any window or source of light, this would made their job harder for sure.

"…I hate it when I'm right" Michael said with tone full of contempt.

"At least your theory was proven!" Kallen said to Michael.

"Night visions and IR flashlight! Now!" Victoria ordered to everyone.

Everyone quickly activated their AR lens alongside taking out small Infrared Flashlight and attached it to their ears, if Ryan remembered his lesson he took from the internet that infrared could give the night vision a performance boost. The place highlighted by IR flashlight would be seen clearly if you're wearing night vision, the modern night vision incorporated this technology directly into their equipment. The flashlight could help a lot in area completely devoid of light…Anyway, Ryan could be wrong but he didn't really care about the details behind it because as long as it works he'll take it as useful.

"Circle the VIPs, don't let your guard down and scan everything in the room! Those little robots are still out there!" Ryan commanded as he took out his M1911H.

"Ladies and gentlemen, how's the ballroom?" Himeko asked on the radio.

"We did some damage control, at least the crowd still calm about the sudden blackout" Sakura said on the radio.

"Understood, calmly guide everyone out of the building" Himeko instructed on the radio.

"Roger that ma'am, we are on it" Sakura said on the radio.

"Rahn, go outside the building and check the situation. Agus, Grey, accompany him!" Victoria said to them.

"Yes ma'am" "Will do" "Sure thing ma'am" Rahn, Agus and Grey said as they exited the room.

Victoria sat in silence with the VIPs all this time because technically Himeko's was the one in charge of Task Force Terra, but she couldn't bear to just sit at time and situation like this so she couldn't helped herself giving orders to her Vikings and some Valkyries. She's ranked higher than them and also their instructor so everyone complied with her orders despite she's not being in charge directly, they trusted her judgment.

"Igor, does The Mountain Dragon ever use this trick?" Ryan asked Igor.

"Nothing new here tovarisch, but something is odd…their technology has become more advanced compared to six years ago" Igor said to Ryan.

"Isn't that supposed to be? Naturally for a group of terrorist to survive this long?" Ryan asked Igor with a frown.

"Nyet, what I mean was the fact that Mountain Dragon could procure expensive equipment like these drones…Either their influence grew under the radar, or they have someone that could made these things-"

DUAR!

They heard another explosion but this one was louder and made the building shook for a bit, everyone scanned the whole room to find the source of the explosion. What kind of explosion was that? Gas leak or even a bomb? No one knows, but Victoria did send Rahn alongside Agus and Grey outside so they should be able to report if something went wrong any moment now.

"…Either Rahn just fart loudly into the radio or something did exploded near our location!" Han said on the radio.

"Yeah, in this case somehow I wish I was the one who farted explosive diarrhea right now! Something just exploded and engulfed the fifth floor of the building in flames! My guess is incendiary bomb! The building will burn down in few minutes! Get out of there!" Rahn said on the radio.

"This is Momose! The ballroom is in the state of panic! Ack! Everyone is trying to get out! We can't handle this alone, send help now! CALM DOWN! EXIT THROUGH THE DOOR IN ORDERLY MANNERS! STAY CALM!" Momose reported on the radio with loud shouting and screaming in the background.

The members of Task Force Terra inside the safe room were getting restless, they had to defend the VIPs from these unknown drones inside a crumbling building? They could get out through the hallway but it's probably full of exiting civilians, things that chaotic will provided a clear opportunity to get ambushed…Victoria immediately went with the safe option, making another exit.

"Bronya, map an exit through the walls, now!" Victoria said to Bronya.

"Da, Bronya understood" Bronya said to Victoria.

"…Have anyone watched Aliens 2?" Han asked out loud with a VAP on his hand.

"With the Xenomorphs? On Planet LV-426?" Kallen asked to Han with her dual Anaconda out on her hands.

"Yeah…I'm just glad these things won't be face huggers!" Han said while making sure Bella was right behind him.

"But they have the same characteristic…on the scale of one to fucked? How bad are our situation?" Michael asked as he readied his USP.45.

"Major Victoria! This is Theresa! Can you hear me!?" A radio transmission suddenly came in.

Everyone paid immediate attention to their radio chatter, Principal Theresa just suddenly contacted them! Where was she? She didn't attend the party, she must be with the other officials so why contacted them now? And her tone hinted that whatever she's going to say would be an urgent matter, Victoria had a bad feeling in her gut as she took out a Bee Sting PDW from a sheathe on her thighs, concealed by her dress.

"Principal? What is it?" Victoria asked Theresa on the radio.

"We're under attack! Saint Freya Academy is under attack! We need The Vikings back here as soon as possible and any reinforcement you can spare! Himeko could handle the security on site, I need you here now!" Theresa said on the radio with gunfire in the background.

…Victoria did a think over. So, Theresa was in Saint Freya Academy, the third best guarded place on Soukai after UNAF military base and Schicksal research lab and factory hybrid complex. It made sense to hold the meeting there but something doesn't add up…What's the purpose of this attack on their site? Was it a distraction? They aimed at the other officials too? Going so far as to attack a well-defended site? Mountain Dragon maybe a powerful terrorist group, but their size were small!

Mountain Dragon were either reckless or outright dumb if that's the case, they will lose a lot of man power, money and materials to make two coordinated attacks like this especially at Saint Freya Academy. Unless, the one who attacked their academy wasn't Mountain Dragon but another group working in tandem with them…That's the only logical explanation! The timing was coordinated to the moment where chaos reign on their site they will also made an attack on the academy.

Everyone's ears perked when they heard rapid metallic clicking around them, that's when they realized that this safe room had two ventilation entrances and everyone instinctively aimed their weapon toward the two entrances…that metallic clicking sound were definitely the drones, they're here to finish the job. While Bronya still mapped an exit, with the building that's about to burn down and the agile drones that would be extremely annoying to kill…Ryan wasn't sure which one would be their cause of death.

"...Bronya?" Victoria asked for status updated.

"…Da, found an exit. Summoning Project Bunny 19C, charging cannon, estimated time until completion, one minute" Bronya said as she charged the mech's cannon.

"One minute. This is going to be the longest minute of my life" Kallen muttered out loud.

Just as she said that, the ventilation entrance were opened and the whole room rained those entrance with their weapons. Little did they know, that these drones, with the armed civilians and the assassins they fought tonight would be the nothing compared to what would they faced on their academy.

.

 **Weapon Trivia**

 **Avtomat Kalashnikova Modernyy' (AKM): Modernized version of AK47 Assault Rifle, the rifle saw widespread use all around the world due to their practicality, easy to maintain nature and generally a good weapon to use in any situation. The rifle used 7.62mm caliber bullets and performed quite well both against human or small Honkai creature, it do has more intense recoil than M16B-PAR so proper aiming is necessary. AKM is an outdated weapon judging by the standard technologies today weaponries has, but it could still compete with the modern rifles quite well.**

 **Avtomat Kalashnikova Experimental'nyy Model' 14 (AKEM14): The experimental version of AK rifle series, AKEM14 was originally created with versatility in mind. This rifle was produced with interchangeable parts, effectively it could turn from the average assault rifle into Carbine, Designated Marskman Rifle or even Light Machine Gun version of the weapon. It used the same round as the other AK series, 7.62mm caliber rounds. The weapon is still in experimental phase but it has around five thousand units spread around the world, it's costly to buy one but the performance it give would make the money worthwhile.**

 **Bee Sting Personal Defense Weapon (BS-PDW): Small personal defense weapon created with concealment in mind, thus the weapon was designed to be small and slim. Chambered with 9mm bullets, the weapon functionality in combat was actually quite low because of its minimal damage, short range and small magazine size. Granted, the weapon was meant as a last resort so using it in active combat other than to protect yourself in close quarter is highly inadvisable.**

 **Desert Eagle Hand Cannon: Who doesn't know this gun? The gun was an absolute beast even amongst the magnum hand cannons. The gun could be loaded with various magnum rounds, fired in semi-automatic style, with magazine ranged from seven to nine rounds and a beastly recoil. Often portrayed in media such as movies and games, the gun is extremely popular among general populace and it's not rare to see one in the hands of a Valkyrie. An experimental gauss barrel was created by UNAF that could accelerate the rounds fired, giving it extreme penetration and damage output though it's only available in limited numbers.**

 **.**

 **Preview for the next chapter (Somnum exterreri)**

" **I don't care what method you use, drive them out of the academy and Soukai! At all cost!"**

" **Sakura?! Kiana?! Kallen, they're not responding!"**

" **01, we got things full here! You have to go by yourself! Good luck sir, give em hell!"**

" **Men, suit up! These bastards would feel the might of a Viking Assault Unit firsthand!"**

" **Sheesh son, look at you. You do have a knack for getting into trouble"**

" **Teriri is the world's cutest?! What kind of drugs are you on, ma'am!? I'd like some of those!"**

"… **Remind me not to piss off Himeko in the future! I mean it!"**

" **A maid?! What's a maid doing here!? And is that a scythe?! Holy shit she's good!"**

" **Use that big gun and yeet that fucker into oblivion!"**

"… **Hello my other half. We have to stop meeting like this, seriously"**

.

 **Status Update**

 **Achievement unlocked: Extra HEAT!**

 **Achievement unlocked: That guy just went full meme!**


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